Premier Daniel Andrews … every Victorian has played their part. Photo credit: Bentleigh electorate via Wikimedia Commons
A range of lockdown restrictions have been eased across Victoria from midnight last night (Tuesday night), with Premier Daniel Andrews paying tribute to “the incredible work of our public health teams and every single Victorian who has done their part to keep our community safe from coronavirus”.
Following a reduction in community transmission of the virus in the state, Victoria’s Chief Health Officer made the decision that the current lockdown would be lifted state-wide from 11.59pm.
However, there are still thousands of Victorians in quarantine and authorities are urging people to remain vigilant to stay on top of the highly infectious Delta variant.
“That means CovidSafe behaviours like checking in everywhere, every time, wearing a mask and getting vaccinated when you’re eligible will remain key as we cautiously open up again,” an official statement said.
Easing the restrictions means Victorians may leave their homes for any reason. Restaurants and cafes can also reopen for seated service. Retail and beauty and personal care will open in line with density limits, as will entertainment venues and community facilities.
The Authorised Worker List will no longer apply, meaning businesses and venues can reopen with capacity and density limits of one person per 4sqm.
Victoria will return to the rule that ‘if you can work from home, you should work from home’ but office workers will be able to return at up to 25 percent of capacity or up to 10 people – whichever is greater.
In welcome news for families, children can get back to the classroom, with schools reopening for onsite learning to all students from today.
Public gatherings will be allowed for up to 10 people, with infants under 12 months not included in the cap.
“However, due to the significant transmission risk we have seen throughout the pandemic, gatherings in the home are still not permitted. People will only be able to book accommodation with their household, intimate partner or single bubble person,” the official statement said.
Masks will continue to be required everywhere indoors and outdoors (except private residences), unless an exception applies. Results from a recent Burnet Institute study show that masks played a huge role in slowing the spread of the virus in 2020, Victorian authorities believe they will be an important part of the state’s defences against the virus for some time to come.
“To every Victorian who checked in with our QR system, who got tested and quarantined, and stayed home to slow the spread of this virus, thank you – it’s because of you we’ve able to get on top of this Delta outbreak and open up our state,” the Premier said.