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headline

WA reinstates hard border with Tasmania, NT from Boxing Day

In response to surging COVID-19 cases around the country, WA Premier Mark McGowan said the state will reinstate a hard border with the Northern Territory and Tasmania.

Mr McGowan said he's announcing the border changes now to give residents time to apply for a G2G pass and get back. 

From midnight on Boxing Day, Tasmania and the Northern Territory will be deemed as 'medium risk', joining Queensland, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory.

LIVE UPDATES: Mass vaccination hubs to ramp back up for boosters

Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan announces new COVID-19 restrictions.

Mr McGowan said it gives the state a chance to watch and see what happens to the rest of the country as Omicron spreads.

"As of Boxing Day we will essentially have a hard border with the whole of Australia," Mr McGowan said.

"There will be very few people seeking to come in."

Mr McGowan said it would "take an emergency" for WA to extend the border measures beyond its planned opening date of February 5.

He branded the situation in other states as an "escalating crisis". 

Third COVID-19 vaccine mandatory for many in WA

Mandatory boosters

It comes as third COVID-19 vaccines are being made mandatory in any workplace and profession already covered by the existing jab mandate, Mr McGowan said. 

"So aged-care workforce, health workforce, quarantine workforce, mining," he said.

"The third dose will become mandatory for all those people."

Residents have a month after becoming eligible to get the booster vaccine. 

READ MORE: State by state guide to Australia's latest vaccination rates and COVID-19 case numbers

https://twitter.com/MarkMcGowanMP/status/1473510535492636674?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

New cases

The state recorded four new COVID-19 cases.

Two of these infections were seen in return travellers in hotel quarantine from different locations in Africa. 

Two other cases were seen in a couple from Queensland and are in self-quarantine.

Contract tracing is now underway. 

Mr McGowan has said "this is no time for complacency" and urged residents to monitor for symptoms and get tested if needed. 

READ MORE: How to have a COVID-safe Christmas

headline

Response to Omicron will focus on three key areas, PM announces

Australia will focus on three key areas to deal with the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

Following an emergency National Cabinet meeting today, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the government is taking the new strain "very seriously".

In response to the highly contagious variant, Mr Morrison said people are "strongly encouraged" to wear masks indoors.

LIVE UPDATES: Queensland travellers 'just 10 per cent' of NSW testing queues

"Whether it's mandated or not, that's what we should be doing," he said.

He further encouraged Australians to move gatherings outdoors where possible.

"People following common sense behaviours is very important."

Despite it not being mandated, Chief Medical Officer Professor Paul Kelly said all Australians should be wearing masks.

"I'll be wearing a mask wherever I go indoors from now on," he said.

"We know that masks work… Masks need to be used."

He said a mandate was up to the state and territory governments.

The second focus will be on booster shots.

Mr Morrison said the government would increase payments to GPs and pharmacists to the amount of $10 per shot to encourage them to keep working over the holiday season.

He said states also needed to reopen their vaccination hubs again to accommodate the delivery of booster shots.

Mr Morrison said a decision on changing the interval between Australia receiving a second dose of a COVID-19 and a booster shot would be decided the "the experts" – ATAGI.

READ MORE: NSW COVID-19 cases leap amid pleas for border rule changes

Scott Morrison

"There has been no change to the interval. That will be determined by the immunisation experts and no one else."

The Prime Minister said starting to vaccinate five to 11-year-olds on January 10 would remain a priority.

The third area of focus will be on getting a consistent definition of a casual or close contact.

This will help curb the huge demand for testing seen across the country in recent days with thousands lining up to get a negative result in order to travel to another state.

READ MORE: COVID-19 testing clinics swamped amid growing frustration over tourism rules

"We must have a common definition, right across the country, of what is a casual contact, and what are the implications of being a casual contact," Mr Morrison said.

"We cannot have different rules in different places."

He said experts would make a recommendation on the definition in the next fortnight, and added it was not realistic to use QR codes to completely track COVID-19 outbreaks in areas with high case numbers.

"My main message is to stay calm, get your booster, follow the common-sense behavioural measures."

He said it had been agreed Australia was not going back to lockdowns and that Australia was arguably one of the best placed countries in the world to deal with Omicron.

National Cabinet will meet again in a fortnight.