Overview
For four days now, Victoria has been in lockdown as part of the state's latest effort to stop the spread of COVID-19. The stay-at-home period was due to run for five days, starting at 11.59pm on Thursday, July 15 and ending at 11.59pm on Tuesday, July 20; however, Premier Daniel Andrews has announced that it'll be continuing past that initial end date.
At the state's daily press conference today, Monday, July 19, the Premier said that "these restrictions simply cannot end at midnight tomorrow night". He continued: "we are running alongside this virus, but we are not yet out in front of it. If you think about it like a fire, we have a containment line and are making significant progress but it is not out yet. What we know with Delta is an hour is like a day and day is like a week in some ways — it is moving so fast."
The plan, the Premier advised, is to be able to reopen after this lockdown and stay open — which is why the state won't be able to ease its stay-at-home conditions on Tuesday, July 20. "It would be perhaps a few days of sunshine, and then there's a very high chance we'd be back in lockdown again. That's what I'm trying to avoid," he said.
At this stage, the Premier isn't able to advise how much longer the lockdown will run, or what the exact conditions will be. Andrews announced that he hopes to be able to provide that information by this time tomorrow.
Victoria currently has 81 active COVID-19 cases, including 13 new locally acquired cases identified in the 24 hours to midnight last night.
At the moment, as under past Victorian lockdowns — including the last one before this back in May and June — the state's residents can only leave home for five reasons: shopping for what you need, when you need it; caregiving and compassionate reasons; essential work or permitted eduction that can't be done from home; exercise; and getting vaccinated against COVID-19.
Exercise must be limited to two hours a day with your household members, your intimate partner or one other person who is not from your household or your partner. Once again, though, Victorians must stay within five kilometres of their homes, unless you're leaving for permitted work or you're shopping for essentials if there are no shops in your radius.
Masks are also mandatory everywhere outside of your home — and private gatherings are banned, as are public gatherings. But, while you can't have any visitors enter your home in general, there are single bubbles, and intimate partner visits are allowed. So, if you live alone, you can form a bubble with another person or see your other half.
Weddings are not permitted, unless on compassionate grounds, while funerals are limited to ten. Hairdressing and beauty services, indoor physical recreation and sport venues, swimming pools, community facilities including libraries, entertainment venues and non-essential retail venues remain closed — and hospitality venues have reverted back to takeaway-only.
Supermarkets, bottle shops and pharmacies are still open — and professional sports can proceed, but without crowds.
Victoria will not leave its current lockdown after five days, on Tuesday, July 20, with further details to be announced on that date. For more information about the rules in place at the moment, head to the Victorian Department of Health website.