Australia news live: Sydney braces for more Covid cases amid new mask rules for schools

South Australia will consider scrapping some Covid-19 border restrictions as the risk posed by virus outbreaks in other states begins to ease.

The state’s transition committee will meet on Thursday to consider the border rules imposed after local virus cases emerged in NSW, Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, reports Tim Dornin from AAP.

SA now has hard border closures in place with WA, NSW, the ACT, the NT and Queensland.

Most of those could go, though the ban on travellers from NSW and the ACT is likely to stay with a virus lockdown for Sydney extended for another week.

Earlier this week South Australia dropped testing requirements for travellers from Victoria and also eased a range of local virus measures. The changes also returned the state to a general density rule of three people to every 4 sq m.

Public and family gatherings increased to 200 people while drinking while standing up and dancing returned. Mask-wearing rules and advisories were also dropped.

And here we go! The full rundown on that amazing semi-final victory from England:

England have reached their first final at a major men’s tournament since 1966 after a 2-1 extra-time win over Denmark. Harry Kane’s goal, scored on the rebound after Kasper Schmeichel had saved his penalty, earned victory on a nerve-shredding night at Wembley.

Mikkel Damsgaard had fired Denmark ahead with half an hour played, beating Jordan Pickford with a superb strike from a 25-yard free-kick. England rallied and five minutes before the break, Bukayo Saka’s low cross towards Sterling was turned in by Danish defender Simon Kjær.

In the second half, Schmeichel tipped Harry Maguire’s header away before Kane went down in the area but was penalised for a push.

England cranked up the pressure in extra-time with Kane and Jack Grealish going close, before Sterling went down in the penalty area under pressure from Joakim Mæhle and Mathias Jensen.

You can read it all below:

Woohoo! England has defeated Denmark in the Euro 2020 semi-final! (I don’t know what this means, but I think it is exciting.)

I believe England has only reached the semi-finals four times in like 55 years! How fun!

This means England will go on to battle it out with Italy for the cup.

If you want to get all the updates from someone who knows much more than me, check out our live coverage with Paul Doyle below!

Speaking of the road out of lockdown, NSW teachers and senior students in greater Sydney and surrounds will have to wear masks if they return to school next week.

Education minister Sarah Mitchell said the new Covid-safe rules apply to schools inside areas impacted by the stay-at-home orders. This is greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour.

Masks would be mandatory for all staff in all school settings, as well as students from year 7 (12- and 13-year-olds) upwards if they need to return to campus. Most students will be learning from home in this period but schools remain open for those who need it.

Mitchell said she understood it was a challenging time for students, staff and parents but schools were prepared to manage the restrictions.

In regional areas, masks will be recommended for all staff in all school settings as well as high school students.

A very, very good day to you all, I simply cannot believe it’s only Thursday and I intend to complain about it all morning.

I’m Matilda Boseley and there is plenty of news to get through.

After announcing that the greater Sydney lockdown will be extended for an additional week, NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian warned that harsher localised restrictions could be introduced for three local government areas in the city’s south-west if Covid-19 continues to spread rapidly in the area.

The Fairfield, Liverpool and Canterbury-Bankstown LGAs are some of the most multicultural area in Australia, raising criticism from the community that the government could be attempting to “pass the buck” of Covid-19 on to migrant populations.

Yesterday Berejiklian warned that case numbers would spike in the coming days due to the highly infectious Delta strain of the virus spreading rapidly in these communities, and urged residents not to visit family, take unnecessary trips to the shops or really leave their homes at all unless absolutely necessary:

Most of us have stocked up on groceries, probably have more things than we need, so please avoid leaving the house, avoid going to indoor areas, avoid any activity unless absolutely necessary.

NSW recorded 27 new local cases yesterday but just 13 of the new cases were in isolation for the entirety of their infectious period.

We’re expecting to get an update on today’s numbers about 11am, and Berejiklian has flagged she may also reveal a roadmap for how the city will come out of lockdown. So stick around!

If there is something you reckon I’ve missed or think should be in the blog but isn’t, shoot me a message on Twitter @MatildaBoseley.

Let’s jump into the day!