Eight new cases of locally acquired coronavirus were detected on Victoria’s first day out of lockdown. The cases are all linked to known outbreaks and each was isolating throughout their infectious period. More than 35,800 people turned out to get tested on Tuesday. As Victorians awoke to their first day of freedom authorities warned restrictions would remain for “months” until most people have been vaccinated.Announcing the end of the state’s fifth lockdown, Daniel Andrews on Tuesday said some form of restrictions would remain until “the vast majority” of Victorians had been vaccinated. Figures show 40.48 per cent of Victorians 16 or older have had one Covid-19 shot, but just 16.98 per cent have had two. “I wish we were doing this press conference in a warehouse that was full of tens of millions of doses,” the Premier said. “That is not the case. So yes, some of these restrictions are going to be with us and the risk of further lockdowns will be with us until we get the vast majority of Victorians and Australians through the vaccination program.”As revealed by the Herald Sun, Victorians can now leave their homes for any reason and travel more than 5km; restaurants, pubs and retailers can reopen and students will today return to the classroom.But masks remain mandatory indoors and outside, visitors to the home are banned and there will be no crowds at AFL matches or major theatre events for at least two weeks.The “lockdown lite” restrictions will remain for a fortnight before any further easing is considered.“Please don’t go and visit mum and dad at their place,” Mr Andrews said. “(Don’t think) ‘no one will know … it will be OK’. No, it won’t. That’s how this virus spreads.”Despite the home visit ban, brothels and sexually explicit venues will be able to operate with up to 100 patrons.Opposition spokesman Tim Smith said the rules were “proudly inconsistent”.“Victorians will be able to visit a brothel but not their mum at home … The Andrews Labor government is really weird,” he said.In a change from restrictions introduced following previous lockdowns, hospitality venues will be able to reopen for up to 100 patrons.NED-3869-Covid-19-Exposure-Sites-VictoriaBut industry leaders warn that most businesses that opt to reopen under the strict caps will be operating at a loss.Small Business Australia executive director Bill Lang said traders needed a clear road map as to what level of vaccination was needed for the “authoritarian policy” of lockdowns and restrictions to end.“The Premier loves to say that ‘he will have more to say about that later’; the reality for many of these small business owners is that there will be no later for them,” Mr Lang said.A beefed-up business support package is expected to be unveiled on Wednesday, with Treasurer Tim Pallas in talks with his federal counterpart Josh Frydenberg.Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief Paul Guerra said businesses across the board needed that support immediately.“As we snap into lockdowns, we need to be able to snap out, and we’re seeing signs of that,” Mr Guerra said.The Property Council’s Victorian executive director Danni Hunter said an urgent focus was needed to reopen the city.“Melbourne’s CBD contributes around 7 per cent of the national GDP and 25 per cent of Victoria’s economic output … With every lockdown we take another step backwards,” Ms Hunter said.Owners of gyms, previously kept closed directly after a lockdown, said they were shocked to get approval to reopen so quickly. Dukes Gym owner Jonathan Quieros said he was expecting a “more staggered opening”.“We’re excited to get members back in the gym. Nothing beats training in person,” Mr Quieros said.Ten new linked cases of locally acquired coronavirus were recorded in Victoria on Tuesday, but all had been in isolation while infectious.Chief health officer Brett Sutton said three things – “fast and thorough” contact tracing, lockdown and a commitment to following the rules – allowed the state to take a “greater step forward”.“With … those components working together we’re on the cusp of containing our second Delta outbreak,” he said.NED-4263-Vic-easing-restrictions-July27QR CODE PRESSURE ON SUPERMARKETSThe Andrews government has been accused of putting pressure on supermarket employees to enforce Covid compliance of customers in wearing masks and signing in with QR codes.A leading industry group says they were encouraged to step up their training of staff and Covid compliance checks in meetings with government this week.Jos de Brui, chief executive of the Master Grocers Association, which is the industry representative for IGA, FoodWorks and Richies supermarkets, says the directive was clear.“The government was asking for greater compliance checks,” he says.“We are assisting and encouraging people to do the right thing but we can’t be the enforcers. We’re not the police.”Mr de Bruin says their staff are doing their best but are not equipped to force customers to comply, nor is it their job. “We’re being told we have to train our staff at the registers to ask “have you checked in?” and have a QR code available at the station before they can pay,” he says.A Woolworths spokesperson says they’ve been encouraging customers to use the Victorian government’s QR code system for many months and continue to work closely with government authorities on these directives.Health and Safety Ambassadors have been positioned at the entry of all Woolworths Supermarkets during the recent lockdown. Staff are there to help with QR code check-in, cleaning baskets and trolleys, and are also monitoring customer numbers as needed. “The wellbeing of the community is our priority and we have extensive COVIDsafe plans in our stores. We ask our Victorian customers to please treat team members and each other with respect as we work through this difficult time together,” they say Mr de Bruin is asking for supermarket workers to be regarded as frontline workers so they are able to get more immediate access to vaccines.“We’re keen for our staff to be recognised as essential workers. We are on the frontline everyday and we would like to be regarded as a priority in the same way teachers and health care workers are.”
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