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AUSTRALIAWORLDUSA

Officers face charges

The three other officers on the scene when a member of the Minneapolis police force pressed his knee on George Floyd’s neck are being charged with aiding and abetting a murder, and the murder case against the main officer is being upgraded to second-degree, a newspaper has reported.

Almost 30,000 tests voided

Almost 30,000 people have had to be retested for coronavirus after swabs sent to the US were voided due to a processing issue. According to a report in The Daily Telegraph, 67,000 coronavirus test samples were sent overseas early last month following capacity issues at a laboratory in Northern Ireland.

Australia steps up ties with India

Australia and India have upgraded their diplomatic relationship during a virtual summit of their leaders. The countries now share a comprehensive strategic partnership, underpinned by a raft of new agreements to co-operate on research, cyber, infrastructure, trade, education, logistics, defence science and Indo-Pacific maritime issues.

‘We could have done better’

Sweden’s chief epidemiologist showed contrition as criticism mounted over the Scandinavian country’s hotly debated method of fighting the coronavirus, which has resulted in one of the highest death rates per capita in the world.

UK faces ‘many, many job losses’

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson braced the nation dealing with a tragic coronavirus death toll for “many job losses” as further details of the economic impact of the pandemic were set to emerge.

NZ’s COVID elimination day set

New Zealand finally has a date for when it will achieve its lofty goal of elimination of COVID-19: June 15. After weeks of urging by public health experts and government wrangling, the country’s Health Department has settled on a definition of elimination of the deadly virus.

NEW ZEALANDUKUK

YOUR DAILY TOP 12 STORIES FROM FRANK NEWS

FULL STORIES START ON PAGE 3

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AUSTRALIAEUROPEWORLD

Pandemic leaves crews adrift

For nearly four months, Capt. Andrei Kogankov and his oil tanker crew haven’t set foot on dry land. With global travel at a virtual standstill due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Russian captain was forced to extend his normal contract. He still doesn’t know when he’ll be able to go home.

US job losses could hit 30 million

The epic damage to America’s job market from the viral outbreak will come into sharper focus Friday when the government releases the May employment report: Eight million more jobs are estimated to have been lost. Unemployment could near 20%. And potentially fewer than half of all adults may be working.

Commission looks at recovery

Assistance is being rolled out quickly to people affected by the Black Summer bushfires and to those who need it, the man spearheading the recovery says.

Turkey, Russia join forces

Turkey and Russia have agreed to cooperate in the development of a coronavirus vaccine and plan to carry out joint clinical trials, the Turkish health minister have said. Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said scientific advisers from the two countries were scheduled to hold a second round of talks later this week.

Pandemic hits poorest hardest

The United Nations and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement are urging that governments and others unite in developing a “people’s vaccine” to protect everyone against the coronavirus. Their appeal came ahead of a vaccine summit in London organized by the Global Vaccine Alliance that is seeking to mobilize billions of dollars of funding for a COVID-19 vaccine.

Turbulent time for trans-Tasman

Should Canberrans start packing their bags for a quick trip across the ditch to New Zealand? Our friends in windy Wellington think it might be wishful thinking. Business groups on both sides of the sea are itching to establish a trans-Tasman travel bubble.

NEW ZEALANDWORLDUSA

YOUR DAILY TOP 12 STORIES FROM FRANK NEWS

FULL STORIES START ON PAGE 6

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UK

A soldier walks back to a hut after testing a NHS worker for Covid-19 at a drive-through

testing centre in Manchester. - AP

Almost 30,000 Covid-19 tests voidedAlmost 30,000 people have had to be retested for coronavirus after swabs sent to the US were voided due to a processing issue.

According to a report in The Daily Telegraph, 67,000 coronavirus test samples were sent overseas early last month following capacity issues at a laboratory in Northern Ireland.

A Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) spokeswoman has confirmed to the PA news agency that 29,500 of those samples were voided upon their return to the UK, meaning all those people had to be tested again.

“We worked hard to get complete tests for people under difficult circumstances. In many cases that worked and we are grateful for the team for their efforts. But in some cases it didn’t, and the correct judgment was made to void the tests,” the spokeswoman said.

“Everyone affected was offered a new test immediately and we worked quickly to restore full capacity in the UK.”

The Telegraph report said part of the problem could relate to the different standards of equipment used in the US.

The DHSC spokeswoman added that sending swabs overseas was one of the contingencies in place to deal with any problems arising from the nation’s Lighthouse test processing network.

They also said the US laboratory has not been used for further surge capacity since. ■

Trevor Rodriquez sits alone at the spot where Floyd died while in police custody in

Minneapolis, Minn. - AP

USA

Officers involved in death face chargesThe three other officers on the scene when a member of the Minneapolis police force pressed his knee on George Floyd’s neck are being charged with aiding and abetting a murder, and the murder case against the main officer is being upgraded to second-degree, a newspaper has reported.

The Star Tribune, citing multiple unnamed law enforcement sources, said Derek Chauvin would face the more serious charge in the death of George Floyd, who was handcuffed on the ground.

Three other officers at the scene — Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao — were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder, the newspaper reported, again citing sources who spoke on condition of anonymity. All four of the officers have already been fired.

The new charges were to be filed by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.

Earl Gray, who represents Lane, told AP that the report “is accurate.”

The move powerfully punctuated an unprecedented week in modern American history, in which largely peaceful wide-scale protests took place in communities of all sizes but were rocked by bouts of violence, including deadly attacks on officers, rampant thefts and arson in some places.

Earlier Wednesday, in a visit to a makeshift shrine at the street corner where Floyd died, his family had again called for the arrests of Lane, Kueng and Thao, a demand echoed by their attorney.

“We are demanding justice,” Crump said.Some of the rockiness of the days since Floyd’s death May 25

dissipated on Tuesday night, with demonstrations continuing around the country, but without major reports of violence.

Curfews and efforts by protesters to contain earlier flare-ups of lawlessness were credited with preventing more widespread damage to businesses in New York and other cities overnight. ■

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UK

Boris Johnson. - AP

UK faces ‘many, many job losses’British Prime Minister Boris Johnson braced the nation dealing with a tragic coronavirus death toll for “many job losses” as further details of the economic impact of the pandemic were set to emerge.

Johnson insisted he was “very proud” of the Government’s record despite the grim milestone on COVID-related deaths and his admission that large-scale redundancies were “inevitable”.

He said the Government would take an “interventionist” approach to support the economy as it emerges from the lockdown.

The Commons business committee will hear more on the impact of coronavirus on businesses and workers, while the Bank of England will publish a list of companies which receive funding through its COVID Corporate Financing Facility lending scheme.

The Office for National Statistics is also set to detail its latest assessment of the financial and societal damage from the disease.

Meanwhile, ministers are likely to face further questions over their decision to end virtual voting in the Commons after Business Secretary Alok Sharma, who appeared visibly ill while in the chamber, was tested for COVID-19.

After Commons authorities undertook a deep-clean, a spokeswoman for the MP said he would self-isolate after he “began feeling unwell” while delivering the second reading of the Corporate Governance and Insolvency Bill.

Opposition MPs renewed calls for the virtual voting to be reinstated, with Labour’s shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy saying “reckless doesn’t even begin to describe” the scrapping of the system a day earlier.

Johnson will urge world leaders to “unite humanity in the fight against disease” as he hosts an online global vaccine summit aiming to raise £6 billion to immunise millions of children in the world’s poorest nations. ■

People enjoy the warm evening weather in Malmo, Sweden. - AP

WORLD

Sweden: We could have done betterSweden’s chief epidemiologist showed contrition as criticism mounted over the Scandinavian country’s hotly debated method of fighting the coronavirus, which has resulted in one of the highest death rates per capita in the world.

Sweden has stood out among European nations and the world for the way it has handled the pandemic, not shutting down the country or the economy like others but relying on citizens’ sense of civic duty. Swedish authorities have advised people to practice social distancing, but schools, bars and restaurants have been kept open the entire time. Only gatherings of more than 50 people have been banned.

“I think there is potential for improvement in what we have done in Sweden, quite clearly,” Anders Tegnell of the Public Health Agency said.

Sweden, a nation of 10.2 million people, has seen 4468 deaths linked to COVID-19, which is far more than its Nordic neighbors and one of the highest death rates per capita in the world. Denmark has had 580 coronavirus deaths, Finland has seen 320 and Norway has had 237, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

“If we were to encounter the same disease again, knowing precisely what we know about it today, I think we would settle on doing something in between what Sweden did and what the rest of the world has done,” said Tegnell, considered the architect of the unique Swedish pandemic approach.

Authorities in Sweden, including Tegnell, have been criticized – and have apologized – for failing to protect the country’s elderly and nursing home residents.

But Tegnell said it was still unclear what the country should have done differently. He also said other nations are unable to tell exactly what measures affected the outcome of their outbreaks because they threw everything at it in one go. ■

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NEW ZEALAND

- AAP

New Zealand’s COVID elimination day setNew Zealand finally has a date for when it will achieve its lofty goal of elimination of COVID-19: June 15.

After weeks of urging by public health experts and government wrangling, the country's Health Department has settled on a definition of elimination of the deadly virus.

New Zealand has followed an elimination policy path since the arrival of the virus in the South Pacific country, eschewing lighter approaches by countries including Australia.

That approach, including a seven-week lockdown, is paying dividends.

On Wednesday, health officials announced for the 12th straight day they had found no new cases of the virus, from thousands of tests.

Just one person in New Zealand has COVID-19, an Aucklander who is currently isolating and is due to be asymptomatic this week, should the virus follow a normal course.

However, that case is irrelevant to whether New Zealand has eliminated the disease.

The Ministry of Health now says elimination can be declared 28 days after the last case from a "locally acquired unknown source", or community transmission, has completed their treatment and tested negative.

According to the Ministry, New Zealand's last case of community transmission tested positive on April 29, and was in isolation until May 18.

"As per the definition of elimination, the 28 day period would be counted from that person's exit from isolation," a department spokeswoman said.

That means when Director General of Health Ashley Bloomfield holds his regular daily briefing at 1pm on June 15 – 28 days from May 18 – he will be able to say New Zealand is the first nation to eliminate COVID-19.

Of course, a subsequent discovery of another case of community transmission would re-start the clock towards the elimination milestone. ■

Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the

2020 Virtual Leaders Summit between Australia and India. - AAP

AUSTRALIA

Australia steps up ties with IndiaAustralia and India have upgraded their diplomatic relationship during a virtual summit of their leaders.

The countries now share a comprehensive strategic partnership, underpinned by a raft of new agreements to co-operate on research, cyber, infrastructure, trade, education, logistics, defence science and Indo-Pacific maritime issues.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said stepping up the relationship would build trust even further between the nations.

“In a time like this, we want to deal very much with friends and trusted partners, and this is a partnership which has stood the test time and again,” he told his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi via videolink.

“We share a vision for open, free, rules-based multilateral systems in our region, whether that’s in the health area or it’s in trade or in other places.”

Modi later said it was an outstanding discussion, describing Morrison as a dear friend.

“With (the) comprehensive strategic partnership between India and Australia, we aspire to achieve yet new heights in our collaboration,” he said.

Australia will throw $15 million behind an India-Australia research collaboration fund, plus another $4.5 million to support work by CSIRO to reduce plastics waste.

The fund would see grants of up to $600,000 go to Australian and Indian research projects with the Indian government to make matching contributions.

Science Minister Karen Andrews said the funds would bring Indian and Australian researchers together.

“Strengthening that relationship through a shared commitment to science and technology will only serve to benefit both our nations,” she said.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne welcomed the signing of the maritime pact, which included combating the smuggling of people, guns and drugs. ■

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USA

US businesses shed 2.76 million jobs in May, as the economic damage from the historically

unrivaled coronavirus outbreak stretched into a third month. - AP

US job losses could hit 30 millionThe epic damage to America’s job market from the viral outbreak will come into sharper focus Friday when the government releases the May employment report: Eight million more jobs are estimated to have been lost. Unemployment could near 20%. And potentially fewer than half of all adults may be working.

Beneath the dismal figures will be signs that job cuts, severe as they are, are slowing as more businesses gradually or partially reopen. Still, the economy is mired in a recession, and any rebound in hiring will likely be painfully slow. Economists foresee unemployment remaining in double-digits through the November elections and into 2021.

If their forecast of 8 million jobs lost in May proves correct, it would come on top of April’s loss of 20.5 million jobs — the worst monthly loss on record — and bring total job cuts in the three months since the viral outbreak intensified to nearly 30 million. That’s more than three times the jobs lost in the 2008-2009 Great Recession. And if the jobless rate does reach 20% for May, it would be double the worst level during that previous recession.

Overhanging the jobs picture is widespread uncertainty about how long the unemployed will remain out of work. Most of the layoffs in recent months were a direct result of the sudden shutdowns of businesses in response to the coronavirus pandemic. As many of these businesses reopen, at least partially, workers who had been laid off have held out hope of being rehired soon.

But some small employers might not reopen at all if the recession drags on much longer. And even once companies do reopen, their business may not fully return until Americans are confident they can shop, eat out and return to other previous habits without becoming sick. For now, most people who have lost jobs still say they expect their unemployment to prove temporary. ■

Anchored ships are seen miles away from the port of Piraeus, near Athens, Greece. - AP

WORLD

Pandemic leaves ship crews adriftFor nearly four months, Capt. Andrei Kogankov and his oil tanker crew haven’t set foot on dry land. With global travel at a virtual standstill due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Russian captain was forced to extend his normal contract. He still doesn’t know when he’ll be able to go home.

Countries across the world have imposed lockdowns, shut borders and suspended international flights to curb the spread of the new coronavirus. Merchant ship crews have become unintended collateral damage.

About 150,000 seafarers are stranded at sea in need of crew changes, according to the International Chamber of Shipping. Roughly another 150,000 are stuck on shore, waiting to get back to work.

“In some ways, they’ve been the forgotten army of people,” said Guy Platten, secretary general of the ICS. “It’s not a tenable position to keep on indefinitely. You can’t just keep extending people,” said Platten.

With more than 80 per cent of global trade by volume transported by sea, the world’s more than two million merchant seafarers play a vital role.

“They’re out of sight and out of mind, and yet they’re absolutely essential for moving the fuel, the food, the medical supplies and all the other vital goods to feed world trade,” Platten said.

International shipping organizations, trade unions and shipping companies are urging countries to recognize merchant crews as essential workers and allow them to travel and carry out crew changes.

“Our challenge now is to get a very strong message to governments. You can’t expect people to move (personal protective equipment), drugs and all the issues that we need to respond to COVID, and keep cities and countries that are in lockdown fed, if you don’t move cargo on ships,” said Steve Cotton, General Secretary of the International Transport Workers’ Federation, or ITF. ■

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WORLD

Community activist Kunal Kanase, 31, stands for a picture in a lane of Dharavi, one of Asia’s

largest slums, in Mumbai, India. - AP

Pandemic hits poorest hardestThe United Nations and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement are urging that governments and others unite in developing a “people’s vaccine” to protect everyone against the coronavirus.

Their appeal came ahead of a vaccine summit in London organized by the Global Vaccine Alliance that is seeking to mobilize billions of dollars of funding for a COVID-19 vaccine.

The “people’s vaccine” should protect the affluent, the poor, the old and young, said a statement by the UN and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. That is a “moral imperative that brings us all together in our shared humanity,” it said.

It said the pandemic is also raising risks of other diseases as it disrupts childhood immunization programs, leaving at least 80 million children under the age of one at risk of diseases like measles, diphtheria and polio.

The urgency of finding a way to stem outbreaks was evident as India reported yet another record number of new infections, at 9,304, with 260 deaths in the previous 24 hours.

India’s tally of COVID-19 fatalities surpassed 6,000 and its number of infections has risen to nearly 217,000, the Health Ministry said. That makes India the seventh worst hit by the pandemic.

Neighboring Pakistan reported over 4,000 new cases and said 82 more people had died, raising its death toll to 1,770. On Thursday, as many as 901 COVID-19 patients were listed in critical condition in Pakistan hospitals.

The spike in infections comes weeks after Prime Minister Imran Khan overrode warnings from experts and eased a lockdown. Officials have blamed the public for not adhering to social distancing regulations.

As countries such as New Zealand and Australia mark progress in containing the pandemic and work on plans to resume some international air travel, others are having to step up precautions. ■

People walk along popular Tunali Hilmi Street, in Ankara, Turkey, days after the

government lifted a series of virus restrictions. - AP

EUROPE

Turkey, Russia join forces on vaccineTurkey and Russia have agreed to cooperate in the development of a coronavirus vaccine and plan to carry out joint clinical trials, the Turkish health minister have said.

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said scientific advisers from the two countries were scheduled to hold a second round of talks later this week.

A total of 22 Turkish universities and research centers are working to develop a vaccine, and four of them have advanced to the animal-testing stage, Koca said.

The minister also said that Turkey has seen the benefit of the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine and will continue to administer it to COVID-19 patients, despite concerns raised over the drug.

Koca said that unlike other countries, Turkey has been using the drug early in COVID-19 threatment.

Turkey recorded 867 confirmed virus cases and 24 deaths between Tuesday and Wednesday, the minister said. The update brought total confirmed cases in the country to 144,422 and the death toll in the pandemic to 4,609.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said earlier that Turkey evacuated more than 75,000 stranded Turkish nationals from 126 countries during the pandemic. At least 562 Turks died abroad, he said

Turkish airline companies resumed domestic flights this week as restaurants welcomed sit-down customers and beaches and museums reopened. ■

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Turbulent takeoff for trans-Tasman travelShould Canberrans start packing their bags for a quick trip across the ditch to New Zealand?

Our friends in windy Wellington think it might be wishful thinking.

Business groups on both sides of the sea are itching to establish a trans-Tasman travel bubble.

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry wants to restart flights between the two COVID-safe capitals next month.

The plan has the backing of the Wellington, Auckland and Canberra business chambers.

Canberra Airport has even opened a register of interest for potential flights on July 1 and 2.

But New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters told everybody to cool their jets.

“This is too early and doesn’t have the support of the Australian government at this point in time,” he said.

Peters couldn’t resist a cheeky dig at the Australian bush capital.

“I wouldn’t have thought Wellington and Canberra are the best places for this flight,” he said.

“Nothing against Canberra, but I’m for mass population movement by way of demand, rather than the capital cities.”

Air New Zealand isn’t firing up their engines just yet.“Air New Zealand is not proposing Tasman operations until

such time that the Tasman borders are open, and only with the support of governments on both sides,” the airline said.

“We appreciate that both businesses and travellers are enthusiastic about operations, and we assure customers that as soon as it is possible to operate, Air New Zealand will be ready to return to the Tasman.” ■

NEW ZEALAND

- AP

Bushfires commission looks at recoveryAssistance is being rolled out quickly to people affected by the Black Summer bushfires and to those who need it, the man spearheading the recovery says.

National Bushfire Recovery Agency co-ordinator Andrew Colvin is set to give evidence to the royal commission into the disaster.

The agency said $1 billion from the $2 billion national bushfire recovery fund has been spent so far.

"I am confident that we have been effective in rolling out assistance quickly and that it is getting to the people who need it," Colvin said.

"But we always need to do more and we will keep working with our state partners to implement the $448.5 million local economic recovery and complementary project funding program, ensuring recovery projects are delivered on the ground for the most severely affected communities."

Colvin will be one of several witnesses when the royal commission will examine the Commonwealth's role in supporting and co-ordinating recovery from natural disasters. ■

New plant life growing in the midst of burnt-out bushland on the outskirts of Cobargo,

NSW. - AAP

AUSTRALIA