Victoria to tighten NSW border controls as 5km scrapped

By Paul SakkalUpdated July 26, 2021 â€" 9.28pmfirst published at 7.16pm

The Andrews government will tighten border controls as the state prepares to slowly ease out of its fifth lockdown and scrap the five-kilometre restriction on movement.

With Victorians in NSW to be locked out for weeks, the public health team is focused on ensuring the thousands of workers who cross the border each day pose minimal risk of spawning another COVID-19 outbreak and further lockdowns.

A Victoria Police checkpoint at Chiltern on the Hume Highway earlier this month.Credit:Jason Robins

A government source, speaking anonymously to detail the plans, said the government would tighten the rules around border crossing for permitted workers and establish additional testing requirements in coming days. “It’s all about protecting [against] further incursions,” the source said.

Ministers locked in plans on Monday night to return settings to those in place when Victoria exited its last lockdown.

A second government source confirmed schools would be reopened, hospitality businesses would be subject to strict density limits, masks would be required inside and outdoors, offices would return to 25 per cent capacity and the limit on travel beyond five kilometres will be scrapped and not replaced by a 25-kilometre restriction as it was last month.

Most of the rules have been agreed on, but any unexpected cases that were not in isolation for their infectious period could thwart the easing, which was already delayed by a week. The full details will be finalised on Thursday morning and then announced by by Premier Daniel Andrews.

The strong clamps on activity, designed to limit social interaction while allowing business to reopen, are expected to run for a week before releasing further if daily cases continue to dip.

The cabinet was also weighing up whether to allow spectators at AFL matches this week, with one government source tipping that fans would be barred until at least the following weekend, when Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton may have greater confidence the outbreak is controlled.

Public health officials are more concerned than ever about mass gatherings at sporting events after two significant outbreaks at the MCG and AAMI Park, where outdoor transmission is believed to have occurred.

Health Minister Martin Foley said the government was “on track” to lift the lockdown and he expected a “careful, staged” return of schooling would be part of the public health advice underpinning the easing of restrictions.

Mr Foley said the outbreaks at Trinity and Bacchus Marsh grammar schools were evidence that schools were risky sites in terms of transmission and he flagged Education Department plans to alter the logistical operation of schools to mitigate the risk.

Other settings when the state exited lockdown four included the resumption of outdoor community sports. Some restaurants and pubs chose not to open at that time because operating under a 50-person indoor cap was not financially viable. Gyms remained closed and funerals and weddings were capped at 10 and 50 people respectively.

The 11 COVID-19 cases recorded on Monday were all isolated for their infectious period â€" the second consecutive day this metric was achieved.

However, Mr Foley said the daily tally was still significantly more than when the previous lockdown was lifted. Even though the cases were isolated, the high number was cause for caution, he said.

Nine of the 11 were household contacts of known cases, including two linked to Trinity Grammar; two to Bacchus Marsh Grammar; two to AAMI Park; two to the City of Hume cluster; and one to the Young & Jackson pub.

The two cases that were not household contacts were diners at the Ms Frankie restaurant in Cremorne. State COVID-19 response commander Jeroen Weimar praised the restaurant for its work in assisting authorities.

Melbourne University epidemiologist Tony Blakely said it was critical border rules were tightened to the maximum extent.

“It’s ironic that soon after we halved the number of returned travellers to reduce risk at our international border, the risk was replaced by our domestic borders,” he said, adding rapid antigen testing at the border could help mitigate the danger.

“If NSW wants to rock and roll with this virus … we need to protect our border. It’s not in Australia’s interests to have the second-biggest state topple over as well as the biggest state.”

NSW recorded two more deaths and 145 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, including at least 76 who were infectious in the community. The proportion of cases infectious in the community in NSW is not decreasing â€" a sign contact tracers are struggling to control the spread.

Contact tracers from Western Australia are assisting NSW tracers. Victoria has not offered help because officials are dealing with cases in their own state, but help may be provided when Victoria’s outbreak ends.

The AstraZeneca vaccine will soon be available for walk-up appointments in NSW after the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation recommended all adults in Greater Sydney consider receiving the shot.

The Victorian government is consulting with the advisory group to better understand updated advice on the locally made jab. People aged over 60 can receive AstraZeneca from Victorian vaccine hubs but those under 60 can receive it from GP clinics only.

“[We] will look at that advice and if ... we change the practice of how AZ’s delivered, we’ll have more to say very soon,” Mr Foley said.

Following reports the NSW government had completed financial modelling for stay-at-home orders to extend until September 17, Premier Gladys Berejiklian said it did not mean the lockdown would end on that date. “I wouldn’t jump to any conclusions like that,” she said.

There are currently 190 active cases in Victoria. State health authorities received 25,404 test results on Sunday and delivered 13,953 vaccine doses at state-run clinics. The list of exposure sites sat at 365 on Monday afternoon, after exceeding 430 on Saturday morning.

Only essential workers, freight workers and people with compassionate exemptions are currently allowed to enter Victoria.

Freight drivers are required to be tested every three days and minimise contact with people in Victoria. Removalists, who sparked part of the current outbreak on July 8, are not permitted to enter from NSW.

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Paul is a Victorian political reporter for The Age.

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