Cafes, restaurants and bars in Australia’s most populous state were reopening on Friday after a two-month shutdown under coronavirus lockdown measures. The easing of quarantine measures in New South Wales (NSW) comes just a day after the national statistics office reported unprecedented record high job losses and PM Scott Morrison warned that worse was still to come.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian cautioned people to remain vigilant and maintain social distancing. Restaurants, public pools and other businesses are allowed to reopen on the proviso they limit customers to 10 at a time.
In the Northern Territory, where coronavirus case numbers have been low and there have been no deaths, pubs are opening with no restrictions on patron numbers. There are no limits on public gatherings or house visits.
Victoria, the second most populous state, is currently retaining most of its lockdown measures.