Good morning all.

1. NSW has introduced a number of new COVID-19 restrictions in response to the latest eastern suburbs outbreak, which grew to nine as of yesterday. Masks will be mandatory on public transport, taxis and ride-share services in a number of metropolitan areas in the state, and are mandatory in certain public indoor settings in seven local government areas in Sydney.

2. Tens of thousands of Sydneysiders are being urged to get tested, as the list of exposure sites grows. Anyone who visited Westfield Bondi Junction – one of the biggest shopping centres in the city – is being asked to get a test regardless of symptoms.

3. Major reforms to Australia’s superannuation system passed through Parliament at the end of last week. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg claimed the tweaks were the biggest in 30 years, and stand to save Australians $17.9 billion over 10 years. Critics and power players in the industry see it differently, funnily enough – here’s what you need to know about the changes.

4. Nationwide lending to first homebuyers is up 67% year-on-year in the first four months of 2021, according to newly released data from NAB. While first homebuyers are increasingly being pushed towards the outer suburbs, skyrocketing prices haven’t yet slowed lending, the figures suggest. Here are the suburbs they’re flocking to.

5. The time to save a deposit to buy an entry-level house has increased by an additional four months on average across capital cities, according to new Domain data. Sydney first homebuyers, for example, now need to save for seven years and one month to get their foot on the ladder.

6. Flights between Sydney and Melbourne are now at their lowest price in over a decade, as competition heats up between Australia’s airlines. A new report from the ACCC has attributed the fall in prices largely to Rex competing on more capital city flights during a boom in domestic tourism. While welcoming the extra competition, the ACCC also revealed it is investigating claims that Qantas and Virgin are trying to drive Rex out of the market.

7. The NSW government will abolish stamp duty on electric vehicles as part of a $500 million plan to boost uptake. “We’re charging up the nation to make NSW the Norway of Australia when it comes to electric vehicles,” said Environment Minister Matt Kean. The government will impose road-user charge of 2.5 cents a kilometre by 2027, and this plan is intended to get adoption up before then.

8. After changes to Australian law that made access to cannabis legal in some circumstances, experts and businesses in the sector say the path to access remains complicated at best. But they were also divided on how Australia’s regulatory approach should change, in light of the rocky path taken by almost every emerging cannabis market. “We’re now moving to a point where there are less barriers for people to access cannabis products and CBD products in Australia,” Dr Ben Jansen, founder of CDA Clinics told Business Insider Australia.

9. A new study has explored the potential impact of COVID-19 on people’s brains. The study, which drew on data gathered by UK Biobank, suggests COVID-19 survivors may suffer from a loss of grey matter over time. The authors wrote: “Our findings thus consistently relate to loss of grey matter in limbic cortical areas directly linked to the primary olfactory and gustatory system,” or areas in the brain related to the perception of senses such as smell and taste.

10. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said he is keeping an eye on Jeff Bezos’ space plans. Space won’t be the Wild West for billionaires, Nelson suggested in a Fox Business interview. “I’m keeping my eye on it, but they’re going to have to meet the same rigorous physical and psychological examination for any other professional astronaut,” he said.

BONUS ITEM

While we’re talking about Jeff Bezos going to space – online petitions to keep him up there have reached 44,000 signatures between them.

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