Pauline Hanson launches a blistering attack on Scott Morrison over snap Queensland lockdown

Pauline Hanson has launched a blistering attack on Prime Minister Scott Morrison, saying he has ‘lost control of Australia’ while launching an epic tirade about Queensland’s decision to plunge the parts of the state into a three-day lockdown.

At 4pm on Saturday, the local government areas of Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan City, Moreton Bay, Redlands, Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Noosa, Somerset, Lockyer Valley and Scenic Rim faced the harshest restrictions the state has seen. 

Residents in the affected areas can only leave home for essential work, study or child care, to exercise, buy food and supplies – and to receive healthcare, including being tested for COVID-19 or vaccinated against it. 

Any non-essential travel must be within 10km from home, everyone must wear a mask when they are outside their home – and people doing exercise can do so with one person who does not live with them.

The lockdown, which Deputy Premier Steven Miles labelled the ‘strictest we’ve seen’, infuriated the One Nation Party founder.  

‘Like a lot of Aussies I was out enjoying my weekend but now we are going to have to be locked down,’ Senator Hanson said in a video shared on Saturday. 

‘It is bloody ridiculous for only six cases of delta. I’m sorry this is over the top.’

Pauline Hanson has said Scott Morrison has ‘lost control’ of the states after Queensland’s snap lockdown was announced 

Large parts of southeast Queensland will go into a strict lockdown until Tuesday (pictured: locals on the Gold Coast last weekend)

Large parts of southeast Queensland will go into a strict lockdown until Tuesday (pictured: locals on the Gold Coast last weekend) 

‘The prime minister said yesterday it would get no worse than what it is at this point, he’s supposed to guide us through this with the premiers.

‘As I’ve said all along the prime minister has lost control of the country and the premiers are doing whatever they want to do. I feel sorry for small businesses.’

A fuming Ms Hanson said premiers and chief health officers were calling lockdowns ‘at the drop of a hat’ and claimed Mr Morrison was ‘foolish’ for allowing them to do so. 

A health worker takes a swab at a drive through testing clinic in Brisbane's east on Saturday (pictured)

A health worker takes a swab at a drive through testing clinic in Brisbane’s east on Saturday (pictured) 

‘Give people clear direction and what’s going on,’ she said.  

The new cases in Queensland are confirmed as the highly contagious Indian delta strain of the virus.  

Community and professional sport including NRL, AFL and Super Netball games will not be permitted during the lockdown.

All three sports had games scheduled for this weekend which will now no longer go ahead, with the NRL trying to seek an exemption for the competition to continue.

More than 3 million Queenslanders will be confined to their homes for three days from 4pm on Saturday after an outbreak linked to the Delta strain

More than 3 million Queenslanders will be confined to their homes for three days from 4pm on Saturday after an outbreak linked to the Delta strain

A 17-year-old senior school student from Indooroopilly State High School in Brisbane's inner west felt unwell yesterday and returned a positive test early on Friday morning

A 17-year-old senior school student from Indooroopilly State High School in Brisbane’s inner west felt unwell yesterday and returned a positive test early on Friday morning

The six new cases are all linked to the Indooroopilly State High School. Pictured is police with the school's acting Principal as the school shuts for deep cleaning

The six new cases are all linked to the Indooroopilly State High School. Pictured is police with the school’s acting Principal as the school shuts for deep cleaning

For the AFL this means games between the Gold Coast and Melbourne, Essendon and Sydney, and Greater Western Sydney and Port Adelaide must now all be rescheduled.  

Deputy Premier Miles said the state had no choice but to impose the harsh restrictions. 

‘We have seen from the experience in other states that the only way to beat the Delta strain is to move quickly, to be fast, and to be strong,’ he said.  

‘This will be the strictest lockdown that we have had.’ 

Funerals and weddings will be reduced to ten people and hospitality venues will be limited to takeaway only.

QUEENSLAND LGAs IN LOCKDOWN FROM 4PM ON TUESDAY

City of Brisbane – 1,131,155 residents

Moreton Bay Regional Council – 469,465

City of Gold Coast – 606,774

City of Ipswich – 210,000

Lockyer Valley Regional Council – 42,267

Logan City – 341,985

Noosa Shire Council – 56,587

Redland City – 160,331

Scenic Rim Regional Council – 43,123

Somerset Regional Council – 22,200

Sunshine Coast Regional Council – 336,482

Total residents in lockdown – 3,210,579 

Non-essential businesses such as cinemas, hairdressers, gyms and places of worship will all close. 

Visitors to houses will also not be permitted. 

The restrictions apply to anybody who has been in any of the 11 LGAs from 1am on Saturday regardless if they’ve since left the area. 

Masks will be required for both students and staff at high schools.  

It comes a day after Indooroopilly State High School in Brisbane’s inner west was forced to close for a specialist deep clean while Queensland Health performed contact tracing on a Covid positive 17-year-old schoolgirl and her family. 

The six new cases recorded on Saturday are all linked to the teenager who is believed to have caught the virus from a medical science student and tutor from the University of Queensland.

The tutor was confirmed positive on Saturday and it’s believed she contracted the virus from a returned traveller in hotel quarantine who was transported to hospital. 

Other cases include the girl’s parents and two siblings, as well as a teacher from the Ironside State School in Brisbane. 

All students and staff from both schools are now isolating for 14 days. 

The youngest child of the family that is linked to the Indooroopilly school attends the Ironside school.

Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said the now infected tutor had visited several venues before testing positive including the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital at the University of Queensland.

‘There are a lot of places she’s been. And we’ll be rapidly getting that information up on our website,’ she said. 

‘Then we are also working through the schoolteacher, where she’s been, and through the other four members of the household with that original case. 

‘But I expect there are going to be an enormous number of exposure sites all through Brisbane and probably as well through the Sunshine Coast and further.’ 

She said it was ‘extremely likely’ more cases would pop up and didn’t comment further on the chance the lockdown would be extended further.  

‘That’s why we need to go into a lockdown and that’s why the lockdown has to be the most restrictive we’ve ever been in, because this is the most infectious virus we’ve ever had,’ she said. 

She also warned Queensland could ‘very quickly’ have an outbreak similar to NSW, which recorded another 210 cases on Saturday.

Mr Miles urged residents entering the lockdown not to panic buy.  

More than 3 million Queenslanders will enter into the state's strictest lockdown ever after six new Covid cases were recorded on Saturday (pictured is the Gold Coast)

More than 3 million Queenslanders will enter into the state’s strictest lockdown ever after six new Covid cases were recorded on Saturday (pictured is the Gold Coast)

‘Please don’t rush our grocery stores. That creates a risk of infection that we want to avoid,’ he said.

‘We have been in contact with the supermarkets – they are all well-supplied. 

‘So, anyone rushing, stockpiling, it just makes the job of our grocery stores, our supermarkets, and the essential workers in those supermarkets, even harder and more risky.’ 

He urged the state not to be complacent with the restrictions as authorities fear a larger outbreak is possible.  

‘We have been here before, but this time it’s different,’ Mr Miles said.

‘We cannot afford to be complacent just because we have done so well so far. We all have to comply with these restrictions.’

Ms D’Ath confirmed the case at the Indooroopilly school of 2,500 students at Friday morning’s Covid update.

‘She became unwell yesterday and went and got tested and overnight her result has come back positive,’ she said.

‘We are testing her family members. It’s a family of five. They live a at Taringa. She’s been in the community for three days and at school for two days.’  

QUEENSLAND’S THREE-DAY LOCKDOWN 

More than 3 million residents across 11 LGAs will be in a strict lockdown from 4pm on Saturday to 4pm on Tuesday

The LGas affected include the City of Brisbane, the Moreton Bay Regional Council, the City of Gold Coast, the City of Ipswich, the Lockyer Valley Regional Council, the Logan City, the Noosa Shire Council, Redland City, the Scenic Rim Regional Council, the Somerset Regional Council and the Sunshine Coast Regional Council

Residents can leave their home for four reasons – exercise, to give or provide care, essential shopping and for essential work or school

Residents can exercise with one other person within 10km of their homes 

Masks are mandatory at indoor venues and residents must not travel further than 10km from their homes 

Funerals and weddings will be reduced to ten people and hospitality venues will be limited to takeaway only.

Non-essential businesses such as cinemas, hairdressers, gyms and places of worship will all close. 

The restrictions apply to anybody who had been in any of the 11 LGAs from 1am on Saturday regardless or not if they’ve since left the area. 

Masks will be required for both students and staff at high schools. 

Visitors will not be allowed at resident’s homes.

Community and professional sport will not be permitted. 

The unlinked case at Indooroopilly State High School saw the school closed for 48 hours to undertake deep cleaning (above) as contact tracers worked to find the source of the infection

The unlinked case at Indooroopilly State High School saw the school closed for 48 hours to undertake deep cleaning (above) as contact tracers worked to find the source of the infection

Indooroopilly State High School is a major Brisbane high school, educating around 2,500 students

Indooroopilly State High School is a major Brisbane high school, educating around 2,500 students

Queensland's chief health officer Jeannette Young described the new case as 'quite concerning' as health authorities scrambled to identify its source

Queensland’s chief health officer Jeannette Young described the new case as ‘quite concerning’ as health authorities scrambled to identify its source

An email from Acting Principal Derek Weeks to parents early on Friday morning alerted them to the case and the closure of the school for 48 hours.

‘I am writing to let you know that a person associated with our school community has been diagnosed with Covid-19,’ Mr Weeks’ email read.

‘As a result, our school will be closed effectively immediately for 48 hours to allow for Queensland Health to perform this contact tracing and, as an extra precaution, I have arranged for specialist cleaners to come to perform a deep clean in accordance with Queensland Health guidelines.

‘I will continue to liaise with the department and we will continue to take the advice from Queensland Health.’ 

The acting principal urged anyone feeling unwell or displaying symptoms of the virus to immediately consult their GP. 

The Springfield campus of the University of Southern Queensland was also closed for precautionary cleaning late Friday morning as a result of the Indooroopilly State High student’s positive test.

Students of the university and the school had collaborated earlier this week. 

A community vaccination centre in the Nicholas Street Precinct at Ipswich was also closed until further notice after the Indooroopilly student visited the clinic yesterday.    

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