Australian home minister Peter Dutton tests positive for coronavirus

[rooster59]

Australian home minister Peter Dutton tests positive for coronavirus

 

Australian Minister of Home Affairs Peter Dutton speaks next to Sri Lanka's Navy Commander Piyal De Silva during a news conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka June 4, 2019. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

 

(Reuters) - One of Australia's highest-profile ministers, Peter Dutton, who is in charge of home affairs, said he had tested positive for coronavirus on Friday and was admitted to hospital in the northeastern state of Queensland.

 

Australia has recorded 156 infections and three deaths from the flu-like disease, but authorities expect a rapid increase in coming weeks, with the arrival of the southern hemisphere winter.

 

Dutton, a former health minister, attended a meeting in Sydney on Tuesday at which he met Prime Minister Scott Morrison and other cabinet members for a few hours, a spokeswoman said.

 

"This morning, I woke up with a temperature and sore throat," Dutton said in a statement issued by his office, adding that Queensland health authorities told him on Friday afternoon that his test had proved positive.

 

"I feel fine and will provide an update in due course."

 

Morrison has advised against gatherings of more than 500 people, but said he would still go to a weekend rugby game, as health officials warned that millions of Australians could get infected within months.

 

A media representative for Morrison did not immediately return an email seeking comment.

 

(Reporting by Tom Westbrook and Paulina Duran; Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Clarence Fernandez)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-03-14

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[Grumpy John]

555 The weekend Rugby game is more important then setting a good example to the general public!  

[Odysseus123]

As much as I do not agree with many of Mr Dutton's ideas-best of luck to him and a speedy recovery to good health.

 

We are all in it together.

[simple1]

2 minutes ago, pdtokyo said:

i heard he's been cleared ... results came back +ve as Potato Blight

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/mar/13/coronavirus-peter-dutton-tests-positive-to-covid-19-after-returning-to-australia-from-us

[Thechook]

Now being reported the the entire federal cabinet may have to go into isolation

[simple1]

16 minutes ago, pdtokyo said:

  3 minutes ago, pdtokyo said:

i heard he's been cleared ... results came back +ve as Potato Blight

 

Thanks for the Guardian link Simple1 (... interesting choice of TV tag) ... i'm already an avid reader

 

i hope both you and the Mr Dutton who i respect immensely by the way, he's a fine character, a very very brilliant man and a good friend of mine, he's done a great job in his previous jobs and he'll do a great job again to make Australia great again [all that said in a POTUS accent] ... i hope you and Mr Potato Head continue taking your irony supplements, we all need to take extra care these days.

'Simple1' was a password I once used. As to your other comments????

[DoctorG]

I think he is a good Minister and wish him, and all affected, a speedy recovery.

[DoctorG]

It takes a certain level of degeneracy to attach a Sad Face to a post wishing affected people a speedy recovery, regardless of their political persuasion.

[wombat]

when nature culls politicians 101

[Odysseus123]

59 minutes ago, wombat said:

when nature culls politicians 101

We will all be culled...

Just to what extent-who knows?

 

There is no magic cure for Australians even squatting behind their magic mountains of dunny paper.

 

So I am in agreement with DoctorG on this one-try having a bit of class and wish anyone and everyone who catches the virus all the best and a speedy recovery.

Edited March 14, 2020 by Odysseus123

[Sujo]

2 hours ago, DoctorG said:

It takes a certain level of degeneracy to attach a Sad Face to a post wishing affected people a speedy recovery, regardless of their political persuasion.

Perhaps it was your comment that he is a good minister.

[Sujo]

Dutton should send himself to christmas island and see just how much he enjoys it.

[ThaiBunny]

2 minutes ago, Sujo said:

Dutton should send himself to christmas island and see just how much he enjoys it.

Christmas Island is only for dirty diseased non-white people

[RJRS1301]

I wish him a speedy recovery, but have begun a gofundme campaign to raise the cost of transport for him to do it on Christmas Island as he has done to so many others, currently and in the past

[harada]

A few years back I attempted to speak to someone at an Immigration office in Aust about my wife's residency visa, it would have taken about 1 min for the info, I was confronted by a security guard who handed me a pamphlet and told to "ring this number"when I asked why considering that there were four people sitting behind computers doing nothing and no one waiting I was arrogantly told "If you're not happy with that call Mr Dutton", so as the Thai's would say som now na, I'm off to buy a bottle of bubbly.

Edited March 14, 2020 by harada