THE SQUIZ
Cases of the Omicron variant of COVID are doubling every 1.5-3 days, the World Health Organization said in a weekend update. About half of the world’s states have reported cases, and the variant is spreading rapidly through populations with high immunity levels from vaccination or previous infections. Experts say it’s unclear if the mutated virus is super good at evading immunity, or if its transmissibility is supercharged – or it could be both. A lot is still unknown about Omicron, and the WHO is following the fortunes of nations with high and increasing numbers of cases closely.

WHAT IS HAPPENING OVERSEAS?
In Europe, the Netherlands has imposed a national lockdown until 14 January in an attempt to prevent a new wave of cases. And plenty more imposed restrictions and cancelled iconic Christmas and new year celebrations. France, Austria, Denmark, Cyprus and Ireland have made those moves. In the UK, Omicron cases account for 80% of new infections, which could hit 100,000/day this week, experts say. On Saturday, an under-pressure PM Boris Johnson said “we are not closing things down”, but more restrictions could be on the cards. And cases are on the rise in the US. Officials there worry that burnt-out health workers, who are already dealing with 60,000 COVID-related hospital admissions a week, will be tested again, particularly in areas where vaccination rates are low.

AND CASES ARE RISING HERE?
In NSW, they really are. Since last Wednesday, more than 10,000 people have contracted COVID in the state, with another 2,566 cases were added to the tally yesterday. That has not persuaded Premier Dominic Perrottet to reintroduce restrictions that were eased last week. More than 90% of those eligible are fully-vaxxed, and he says residents should make their own decisions about wearing masks and going to crowded venues. “The government can’t do everything. It’s over to the people of our state,” Perrottet said. Despite Omicron’s march forward, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said he doesn’t expect to see a northern hemisphere-style response. “We’re going into summer, we have one of the highest vaccination rates in the world,“ he said.