NSW's Social Distancing and Public Gathering Restrictions Could Be Relaxed Next Month

NSW's strict rules surrounding social distancing and public gatherings will be assessed on a month-by-month basis and could be relaxed as early next month, Premier Gladys Berejiklian revealed in a press conference this morning, Wednesday, April 8.

With the number of new COVID-19 cases levelling— there were 48 new cases in the past 24 hours, compared to 49 the 24 hours before that (the lowest since March 19) — and the total number of confirmed cases beginning to stabilise, the Premier said that "there could be a chance, if the health experts deem it appropriate for us, to look at some relaxations".

While the Premier made it clear that "social distancing will be a part of our lives until there is a vaccine", she also said that restrictions could be relaxed in the next month. Responding to a question about restrictions being relaxed as early as May 1, the Premier said "If the [health] advice in a couple of weeks is that there might be a couple of aspects that we can tweak to provide relief to our citizens, well then, we'll take that advice."

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The Premier acknowledged that the restrictions are "hard" and are having an impact on Sydneysiders' mental health and businesses, but also said that "every time you relax a restriction, more people will get sick. More people will die."

For the time being, and over the Easter long weekend, the social distancing and two-person public gathering restrictions remain in place, with maximum penalties of $11,000 and six months in jail for those who flout the rules. At the moment, you can only leave your home for one of four reasons: shopping for what you need; for medical care or compassionate reasons; to exercise, in-line with the new two-person limit; and for work or education if you cannot work or learn remotely.

Fines for disobeying these regulations have already been handed out to hundreds of Sydneysiders — you can read more about some of them here.

To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia and how to protect yourself, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website.

Image: Kimberley Low