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- New COVID-19 restrictions come into force in NSW today, aimed at reducing the number of people gathering indoors
- Restaurants, clubs, cafes and pubs across the state are limited to a total of 300 people, while group bookings are capped at 10 people
- Weddings and corporate events can have a total of 150 people, while funerals and church services are capped at 100 people
- The NSW Government has also asked for social distancing to be enforced, meaning no mingling or dancing is allowed and everyone must stay seated
- Meantime, neighbouring Victoria has recorded six new COVID-19 related deaths and 300 new cases of the virus
- The Victorian Premier is resisting calls for a wider shutdown to be reintroduced, to eliminate COVID-19 from the community
New COVID-19 restrictions have come into force in NSW today, aimed at reducing the number of people gathering indoors.
The changes were announced a week ago, in a bid to lower the risk of the coronavirus spreading in the community.
The new rules affect all restaurants, pubs, clubs, cafes and other event venues across the state, limiting the total amount of people allowed inside to 300.
Group bookings at these venues have also been capped to 10 people per group, while gatherings at homes are subject to a 20 person limit.
Weddings and corporate events are subject to new limits as well, with no more than 150 people allowed at any one event.
While funerals and all religious gatherings, like church services, are capped at 100 people in total.
No mingling, no dancing
Everyone who gathers at any one of these venues or services is being asked to maintain a 1.5 metre social distance, meaning there can be no dancing or mingling.
Authorities are also reminding everyone they must stay seated.
“We absolutely need everybody seated when they are in a venue,” said NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian.
“No dancing, no singing, no mingling,” she added.
Business’ caught flouting the rules will face fines, with police already carrying out compliance checks.
New cases
The enforced new rules come as NSW recorded seven new cases of COVID-19 today, down from 16 new cases yesterday.
Six of those seven new cases are linked to the Thai Rock restaurant outbreak in Wetherill Park, bringing the total number of cases from that cluster to 52.
In neighbouring Victoria, the numbers are starkly different, as the state continues to grapple with a record surge in new coronavirus cases.
An additional 300 cases have been identified in the last 24 hours, while tragically, another six people have died from COVID-19.
All of the Victorians who died from the virus were connected to aged care homes. Three of the deceased were aged in their 80s, while the other three were aged in their 90s.
In the past week alone, 22 people have died in Victoria from COVID-19, while 2,240 new cases have been recorded.
Medical professionals are pushing for stage-four restrictions to be reintroduced to Victoria, but, Premier Daniel Andrews said it’s not needed currently.
“I’ve got no advice to move to a so-called stage four. I don’t want to change those rules at the moment,” he said today.
