Good morning. Omicron is here in Australia as it spreads across the globe. The federal government is set to introduce some of the toughest “anti-troll” legislation in the world. And EU ministers meet to discuss the tragedy on the Channel.
Two international travellers in NSW quarantine have tested positive to the new Omicron Covid variant, becoming the first cases in Australia. The travellers, who arrived from southern Africa and landed in Australia on a Qatar Airways flight from Doha on Saturday, are both fully vaccinated and asymptomatic. They are in isolation in special health accomodation. Here is what you need to know about Omicron. Australia is the latest country to detect it. Three cases have been found in the UK, the Netherlands has at least 13 and Israel has banned foreign visitors amid surges in cases.
EU ministers are meeting in Calais to discuss how to stop people crossing the Channel in small boats, but without the UK home secretary, Priti Patel, whose invitation was rescinded after a diplomatic row with France. France has invited representatives from Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the European Commission to the meeting, which was called last week after 27 people hoping to claim asylum in the UK died making the perilous crossing. Meanwhile, in northern France, friends and relatives of those who died are desperate for answers.
The Australian government is set to introduce some of the toughest “anti-troll” legislation in the world but experts say its focus on defamation will not help curb the rates of online bullying or cyberhate. Yesterday Scott Morrison announced that his government would introduce legislation to parliament this week that would make social media companies reveal the identities of anonymous trolling accounts and offer a pathway to sue those people for defamation. With the government divided over voter ID, integrity and religious discrimination legislation, as Katharine Murphy writes, this is a bill everyone can get behind….