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Australia's peak farming body has backed the federal government's decision to keep the border with Indonesia open, even as fears over our nearest neighbour's foot-and-mouth disease outbreak continue to grow.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles today ruled out the closure, even as security measures at airports ramp up.

Marles told Today this morning the federal government had put in place the country's biggest biosecurity program to meet the threat to Australia's agriculture sector.

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He said national farming bodies were not calling for the border to be closed.

"To close the border would have a very significant impact on our trade.

"What we've got in place now is the biggest biosecurity response that any government has ever done. That's what we are doing.

"We're doing it with more biosecurity officers and more work with Indonesia and countries on the front line."

EXPLAINED: What is foot and mouth disease and can humans get it?

National Farmers Federation president Fiona Simson said farmers had welcomed the action from the federal government, and that closing the border would damage important export markets with Indonesia.

But she and Agriculture Minister Murray Watt both suggested the situation could change.

Watt noted that multiple countries around the world had FMD both now and in the past, and no border closures had been put in place.

Watt said he would continue to act on expert advice, and if the advice changed, he would follow it.

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Watt said security screenings at airports were stepping up, while a decision could be made as soon as today to give biosecurity officers at airports extra powers.

Currently, officers are only able to request that individual passengers take measures such as walking over sanitary footmats, or cleaning their footwear.

However, the creation of "biosecurity response zones" would see the officers empowered to direct entire planeloads of people to undergo such measures.

Simson said farmers would support every single passenger being thoroughly screened.

But, she conceded, "what is possible and what is not, is up to the government".

"The farmers don't want to take any risks at all," she said.

She said the larger risk was involved in people bringing in or posting meat products – legal or illegal.

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The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has revealed which industries it has its eye on, saying the "shadow economy" is alive and well during the pandemic.

The shadow economy (previously referred to as the black economy) refers to activities that take place outside of the tax and other regulatory systems – often involving demanding cash payments, paying workers cash in hand, or not declaring all sales.

The ATO estimates that the community misses out on around $11 billion in taxes each year as a result of the shadow economy.

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Topping the list of industries the ATO was tipped off about in the past year were building and construction, hairdressing and beauty services, cafés and restaurants, road freight transport, and management advice and related consulting services.

Tip-offs from New South Wales were most frequent with more than 13,400, followed by Victoria (more than 11,500) and Queensland (more than 9200).

ATO Assistant Commissioner Peter Holt explained that tip-offs helped the ATO shine a light on tax avoidance and protect honest businesses.

"The last couple of years have been tough for some businesses. But this doesn't make it okay to gain an unfair advantage over honest businesses playing by the rules," ATO assistant commissioner Peter Holt said.

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"As businesses recover from the impacts of COVID and natural disasters it is more important than ever to protect the vast majority of businesses who are honest and try to do the right thing."

And it's not just businesses the ATO is watching.

"We know that many customers also demand to pay in cash and ask for discounts to avoid paying tax, and we also know that many workers are demanding cash especially where there is a shortage of labour," Holt said.

"We get tip-offs from other businesses, customers, members of the public, even employees. The surge in tip-offs tells us the community is not willing to let this behaviour slide anymore.

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Sydney furnished the biggest amount of tip-offs, with more than 6500.

But 7000 came from outside the capital cities as well.

The top five regional locations that the ATO received tip-offs from in 2021-22 were the Sunshine Coast Hinterland, Cairns, Wellington in NSW, Wodonga in Victoria, and the Mornington Peninsula.

The ATO said there were some "tell-tale signs" a business may be operating in the shadow economy, such as "cash only" signs, offering a discount for cash, not accepting card payments, failing to provide payslips to workers, not ringing up sales, or even running illegal software that deletes or modifies sales transactions.

Tip-offs can be made online here, via the ATO app, or by phoning 1800 060 062. All tip-offs are private and you can remain anonymous.

One of Australia's leading virus experts has issued a "call to action", saying we need to re-introduce restrictions like face masks as COVID-19 cases and hospitalisations surge around the country.

Infectious diseases expert Professor Robert Booy said everyone should be "concerned" about the mounting number of admissions and deaths.

The country is inching closer to the number of hospitalisations and deaths seen during the January Omicron wave.

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https://twitter.com/NSWHealth/status/1550254370809229312https://twitter.com/VicGovDH/status/1550254340434284544

Overnight NSW recorded more than 18,000 new cases of the virus, the highest daily reported figure since April 8.

Victoria recorded more than 12,000 cases and 25 additional deaths overnight.

"We should be concerned," Booy told 9News this morning.

"We should be alert, but not necessarily alarmed.

"We need to do things we were doing six months ago, better. Things like wearing masks, social distancing, handwashing, and working from home where possible.

"The numbers are likely to rise to January levels…we're almost at 100 deaths a day."

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The Australian Bureau of Statistics says that by January 31 it had registered 2,639 deaths where people died with, or from, COVID-19.

Booy explained current transmission is being fueled by a new, more infectious sub-variant of the Omicron strain, Centaurus.

"The problem of this new variant, is despite having Omicron before, a month, two months, or three months ago, you can get this one again," he said, adding the strain has been found in 15 countries.

"The CHO and ATAGI say it could be as early as month after a previous infection. Most people will be catching it two, three, four months after.

"It's raising its ugly head rather quickly."

READ MORE: What is 'Centaurus', the Omicron sub-variant of concern?

The infectious disease expert added if the nation managed to reduce the current transmission rate by 10 to 20 per cent the pressure would be taken off hospitals.

"Wherever possible minimise your contact to your fellow human beings, to where necessary," he said.

"Working from home does help."

US Authorities have warned swimmers about entering the ocean after a dead shark washed up on a popular beach in New York.

The carcass, believed to be a juvenile great white, measured approximately 7-8 feet (2.4 metres) and washed up on the Ocean Beaches, Quogue Village Police Department said.

However, before they could secure the body, it "washed back out to sea", prompting the department to issue a warning.

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"At this time we are cautioning swimmers and boaters in the area to be aware of this ongoing situation, and to keep distance to allow the Law Enforcement to monitor this event," it wrote in a statement yesterday,

"If the shark is spotted please contact the Quogue Village Police Department."

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Later that evening a teen was attacked by a shark on Kismet Beach on Fire Island, about an hour and a half from the Ocean Beaches.

Suffolk County Police Marine Bureau say a 16-year-old surfer was bitten just before 6 pm, and sustained a 10-centimetre laceration on his foot.

He was able to walk out of the ocean by himself and was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center in West Islip for treatment.

"When he came in, he was doing the international sign for shark in the water. His friend thought he was teasing because of all the activity," the boy's father, Mike Haynes, told CBS2.

"I wanted to see how the bleed was, and thank God it wasn't an arterial bleed. It was something we could control.

"His feet were dangling in the water, and it came up from beneath.

"I think the shark came up, took a bite and realised it wasn't food and moved on."

The shark responsible for the attack has not been located.

Five people have been attacked by sharks near Long Island beaches, in a two week period from June 30 – July 13, state officials say.

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– WITH CNN