PM

More COVID cases identified from Melbourne's Holiday Inn hotel and authorities think a coronavirus vapor was wafting through the air; and James Packer's disappearing influence on the Crown Resorts board, after the company was ruled unfit to operate a Sydney casino. We'll look at the regulator's role.

What future for Sydney's new skyscraper casino, after a damning report finds Crown Resorts not suitable to hold a gambling license? And veteran AFL club administrator Eddie McGuire steps down as Collingwood president, bowing to immense public pressure and anger over his response to findings of systemic racism at the club;

More pressure on Australia's hotel quarantine system, with two unusual COVID cases in New South Wales and Victoria; We’ll explain how you might need booster shots if you get the AstraZeneca vaccine, after research showing it appears less effective against a South African variant of the virus; and women who sit on company boards say it's easier to be heard in a virtual environment.

Western Australia is coming out of its five-day lockdown after no new COVID cases. The Prime Minister has ordered a review into COVID policies, saying the risk to Australia is reducing; And drinking until you blackout, research finds it's common for young people and it's happening more often to young women.

Victoria is on edge after a COVID transmission to a hotel quarantine guard, fuelling more concern about airborne spread of the virus; and more homes confirmed lost in Perth's bushfire, we’ll hear from those who have lost everything.

Residents east of Perth remain under serious bushfire threat, PM speaks with some forced to flee and the secretary of a local Sikh temple offering warm food and shelter to evacuees; and the tech behemoth Microsoft distinguishes itself from Google, welcoming government regulation that could see it share more revenue with news publishers, Microsoft President Brad Smith joins PM.

The government is still backing Craig Kelly, but a major doctors' group has slammed the Coalition MP for continuing his spread of mistruths about COVID-19; and fears the Government's relaxation of lending rules might leave more domestic-violence victims with debts and bad credit history.

WA's lockdown continues, though no new COVID cases have been detected since the apparent quarantine breach; and the price of silver driven to a five-year high, it’s the latest target for an army of internet-connected investors.

A cold reception to the Queensland Premier's call for more federal funding for hotel quarantine; and another vaccine reports it's very effective against COVID-19, but less so against the newer variants.

Vaccine supply chains are tested, but big pharma insists Australian orders will be filled; and despite COVID, athletes and organisers still expect the Tokyo Olympics to go ahead, a global health expert tells PM it’s difficult to see how it can be held safely.