The Victorian authorities have announced that Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia will be downgraded under the state’s “traffic light” approval system starting Sunday.
Important points:
- Health Secretary Martin Foley has urged Victorians not to travel to New South Wales
- The rules for masks in offices have been relaxed, along with the density restrictions in most venues
- Victorians can now travel to Western Australia without quarantine after border restrictions were eased overnight
According to the changes that come into effect on Saturday at 11:59 p.m., all NT and WA will be green zones.
In Queensland, the Brisbane, Moreton Bay and Sunshine Coast areas are changing from red zones to orange zones, while the local counties will change Townsville, Palm Island, Ipswich, Logan, Redland, Gold Coast, Lockyer Valley, Noosa, Scenic Rim and Somerset from orange zones to green zones.
All local government areas in Greater Sydney remain red zones and regional New South Wales is still considered an orange zone, with a border bubble on the state’s border with Victoria.
Nine days with no new locally acquired cases
The state has also continued its days with no new local COVID cases as authorities weigh in on the possibility of further restrictions on arrivals from New South Wales.
Victoria recorded the ninth straight day with no new local cases on Thursday as 25,590 test results were processed and 15,665 doses of vaccine were dispensed at state locations.
Health Secretary Martin Foley reiterated his strong warning to all Victorians not to travel to New South Wales, pointing out that restrictions could be tightened further.
“We remain on high alert for incursions into Victoria from these inter-state red zones,” he said.
“I cannot rule out that we will take further action to tighten our restrictions on New South Wales. But right now the public health advice is … see what happens next. “
44 new cases were recorded in New South Wales today, 29 of which were in the community while contagious.
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From midnight Western Australia has moved Victoria back to the very low risk categorywhich means arrivals from Victoria no longer need to be quarantined for a fortnight on arrival.
Restrictions in Victoria were eased last night at 11:59 p.m. This means that face masks are no longer required in private workplaces such as offices and factories.
They remain mandatory in public spaces, in customer-oriented roles, in public transport and outdoors when people cannot keep a distance of 1.5 meters.
“Thousands” of returning Victorians warned against getting proper travel permits
Mr Foley said thousands of Victorians are expected to return home in the coming days after the New South Wales school break and he reminded them to get proper travel authorization.
“You run the risk of being sent back on the next available flight or being sent back across the land border if you don’t,” he said.
Orange permit holders must be tested within 72 hours and isolate until they get a negative test.
Holders of permits for the red zone must be tested and isolated for 14 days.
“If you have any symptoms then you shouldn’t travel anywhere and if you’ve been to any of the exposure locations listed, especially New South Wales, don’t leave,” said Foley.
“We remain on high alert for incursions into Victoria from these interstate red zones as we want to make sure that whatever effort we have worked so hard to make continues.”
Increased deliveries of the Pfizer vaccine will now come a month earlier, in August. (
ABC News: Danielle Bonica
)
Police intensify activities on the border with NSW
The Victoria Police have increased their presence along the New South Wales border with a new checkpoint in Chiltern in the north-east of the state.
All vehicles will be diverted from the Hume Highway to a rest area and must show the officers a driver’s license and valid permit.
Senior Sergeant Joel Hughes said police are also conducting roving patrols to prevent anyone from entering the state from an area of concern.
“It’s not a permanent checkpoint here,” he said.
“We’re not going to be here around the clock, it’ll be temporary, but we’ll be here by tonight and possibly for the next few days.”
Victorian Nationals Chairman Peter Walsh said any proposal to reinstate a hard border between states must be carefully considered by the state government.
“‘[This is] a community that happens to have a river running through the middle that marks a border between the two states, “he said.
He said the harsh borders put in place during previous lockdowns in cross-border communities have been “very intimidating” for residents, especially students crossing over to get to school.
“Businesses, schools, and families just don’t know what might happen in the future, so have a plan, be clear about it, and understand the impact this could have on these cross-border communities,” said Walsh.
He said the current border controls, which included a cross-border bubble, were working well.
Confusion over the early arrival of the Pfizer vaccine
Meanwhile, Mr Foley urged the Commonwealth to clear the confusion over the early arrival of Pfizer vaccines.
Currently, Australia is getting 300,000 to 500,000 a week, though As of July 19, Pfizer has confirmed that the number will increase to 1 million per week.
There are no new cans, but the expected deliveries are a month early.
Mr Foley said health ministers met last night and were not informed of the delivery schedule change.
He said there was “some degree of confusion about vaccine supply”.
“What we need is clear, consistent information from the Commonwealth to the States, from GPs to our primary providers,” he said.
Mr Foley said the Victorians missed crucial Commonwealth aid in the last outbreak due to the “Sydney-centered bias of the Commonwealth government”.
“[The] Commonwealth has set a number of rules for Victoria and has clearly chosen to change them for NSW, given very different circumstances, ”he said.
“I welcome the change, but it reflects a disproportionate bias in the way the Commonwealth government does business and that is unfortunate.”
Mr Foley announced a $ 13.2 million increase in maternity services in the face of the baby boom.
Lockdown baby boom for Victoria
Top 10 hospitals for childbirth
- Western District Health Service in Hamilton up 51 percent
- Bendigo Health up 43 percent
- Ballarat Health is up 38 percent
- Kilmore Hospital up 34 percent
- Echuca Hospital up 32 percent
- Sandringham Hospital up 21 percent
- West Gippsland Health Care increases by 21 percent
- Western Health is up 13 percent
- Barwon Health up 11 percent
- Box Hill Hospital is up 10 percent
Mr Foley said Victoria is in the midst of a “COVID baby boom,” with the number of babies born increasing 5.7 percent over the same period last year.
That equates to 1,400 additional babies, including 348 at Western Health, which had the highest number.
Horsham-based Western District Health Service saw a 51 percent increase, while Ballarat and Bendigo saw strong increases.
The boom was patchy but spanned all of the state from Horsham in the west to Gippsland in the east.
“We have seen a huge increase in babies in our system, which has put the midwifery staff under particular pressure, on top of all the new COVID restrictions in hospitals,” said Foley.
He announced an additional $ 13.2 million to further the practical delivery of resources in support of public delivery services across the state, including funding the 175 positions.
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