CANBERRA – Coronavirus restrictions in the Australian capital Canberra will ease earlier than planned after hitting a vaccine milestone, reported Xinhua.
Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Chief Minister Andrew Barr and Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith today said Canberra will, from Friday, move to baseline-level restrictions that are expected to stay in place across the summer.
Barr said changes were brought forward by two weeks after the territory hit a 95% milestone of over-12s fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
Under the most significant changes since the ACT went into lockdown on August 12, limits on household visitors and outdoor gathering sizes will be abolished. Face masks will only be mandatory in high-risk settings and nightclubs will be able to reopen.
Indoor and outdoor events with fixed seating will return to full seated capacity, and restrictions on cinemas and swimming pools will be relaxed.
“Canberrans now have a lot to look forward to in our city over the summer months, as we enter this new phase of our pandemic response,” Barr and Stephen-Smith said in a joint statement.
“But the pandemic isn’t over, and we still need to look out for each other. Stay at home if you are feeling unwell, and get tested if you have any Covid-19 symptoms.”
This morning, Australia reported more than 1,300 new locally-acquired Covid-19 cases – 18 of which were in the ACT – and 14 deaths as the country continues to battle a third wave of infections.
The majority of new cases were in Victoria – the country’s second-most populous state with Melbourne as the capital city – where 1,069 cases and 10 deaths were reported.
So far, about 89.4% of Australians aged 16 and over had received one vaccine dose, and 80.6% were fully inoculated, according to the Department of Health. – Bernama, November 9, 2021
