NSW recorded zero new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. There were two new cases in returning overseas travellers, bringing the total number of cases in NSW since the beginning of the pandemic to 5,129. In the 24 hours to 8pm last night, NSW Health administered 6,228 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, bringing the total number of doses administered in the state to 140,551. More information here.

The deadline for applications for the land tax COVID-19 relief scheme has been extended until 31 May 2021. This extension applies to relief for both the 2020 and 2021 land tax years. Read more.

The temporary tenancy moratorium introduced to restrict when landlords could evict tenants due to rental arrears as a result of COVID-19 ended on 26 March 2021. As 27 March 2021, a six-month transitional period has begun. The transitional period means COVID-19 impacted tenants who accrued rent arrears between 15 April 2020 and 26 March 2021 (the moratorium period) will not be subject to the standard tenancy eviction rules for those arrears. These measures will end on 26 September 2021. More information from NSW Fair Trading is here.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has been closely monitoring suspected side effects from the use of COVID-19 vaccines since the national roll-out began. The TGA says it continues to investigate whether there may be a link between unusual clotting disorders, involving blood clots and very low levels of blood platelets, and the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. There has been one case reported in Australia that is very similar to cases reported in Europe and the United Kingdom. Evidence to date indicates that these events are very rare. An update on vaccine safety is here. The Federal Department of Health and the TGA last week released a joint statement about the AstraZeneca vaccine, noting “Australia’s vaccine safety and regulatory process is world class and people can be confident that vaccines approved for use are safe and effective … our clear focus during the vaccine rollout remains the safety of all Australians.” The full statement is available here.

The NSW Government has announced it will open a ‘mass vaccination hub’ in Homebush within the coming months. It is expected the site will manage up to half of the state’s COVID-19 vaccinations. Premier Gladys Berejiklian said this week that the state remains on target to complete 300,000 vaccines by October. Watch the Premier’s remarks here.

The Australian and New Zealand governments have announced a two-way safe travel zone between the two countries, allowing quarantine-free travel from 19 April. Routine pre-departure and on arrival screening will apply. This provision is only applicable when New Zealand is the destination of travel. If you are transiting through New Zealand to another destination you must apply for an outward travel exemption. Details here.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has upgraded Australia’s economic growth outlook in its latest World Economic Outlook. Australia’s economy is forecast to grow by 4.5 per cent in 2021, one percentage point higher than the IMF’s interim outlook in January. The IMF then expects economic growth to reach 2.8 per cent in 2022, broadly consistent with its earlier projection. Amid continued “high uncertainty” globally, the IMF confirmed the Australian economy is recovering from the COVID-19 crisis faster and stronger than previously expected. Read more here.