New 5km radius for Sydney after NSW announces 466 new cases, four deaths

The 10-kilometre movement radius in Greater Sydney will be cut to five kilometres after NSW recorded 466 new local cases and four deaths on Saturday, with Premier Gladys Berejiklian describing the situation as “extremely concerning”.

The news came just hours before it was announced – via social media and press release – that the entire state would be locked down for at least seven days.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian flanked by NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller on Saturday.Credit: Rhett Wyman

Deputy Premier John Barilaro took to Twitter on Saturday afternoon to say new stay-at-home orders would be introduced for all of regional NSW to “minimise movement and protect our communities from the evolving COVID situation in Sydney”.

He had earlier used an online call to tell regional NSW MPs that the entire state would be in lockdown for at least seven days, an MP unauthorised to speak on the issue told the Herald.

In Sydney, the police presence in areas of concern will be ramped up from Sunday, while riot squads will be deployed and enhanced random checkpoints set up at key roads.

About 500 extra Australian Defence Force officers will also be deployed, following a request from NSW Police.

While an increase in the fine for breaching health orders from $1000 to $5000 will come into effect from Monday, Ms Berejiklian said police would be able to impose the harsher fine from Saturday.

The new five-kilometre rule will come into effect on Monday.

It will “mean that there will be less number of people in certain locations because ... no one will be able to go further than five kilometres of their home”, Ms Berejiklian said.

“You will need a permit to go into regional NSW, whether you are an authorised worker, travelling to a second home because you might be a worker utilising a second home or inspecting real estate,” Ms Berejiklian said. The rule will come into effect from next Saturday.

The case figure, the largest daily recorded since the start of the latest outbreak, came after 130,000 tests across the state.

The deaths include a woman in her 40s in palliative care who was unvaccinated, a man in his 70s who had pre-existing conditions and was vaccinated, a man in his 80s who was not vaccinated, and a woman in her 70s whose vaccination status has not yet been confirmed.

Ms Berejiklian said on Saturday that case numbers in two of the major local government areas of concern, Fairfield and Canterbury-Bankstown, have stabilised.

“Those two local government areas have gone from low levels of vaccination to at least 40 per cent of first doses,” she said.

However, cases are rising in Blacktown, Doonside, Mount Druitt, Maryland, Guildford and Auburn.

There were also 26 new cases recorded in Dubbo and the surrounding region in western NSW, with Ms Berejiklian flagging a possible expansion of regional areas that are in lockdown.

It comes as the fine for breaching health orders in NSW was increased from $1000 to $5000 and a new requirement was introduced for people living alone in hotspot areas to register their nominated companion under the singles bubble.

People are now also banned from visiting their holiday homes, except for one person attending the premises for maintenance reasons.

A new $320 payment has also been announced for people in hotspot areas who are required to isolate while waiting for the results of a COVID-19 test.

The new restrictions and payment were announced on Friday night after the state recorded 390 new local cases.

Ms Berejiklian said the Delta strain of the virus meant Australia now needed to increase its vaccination rate to experience the same freedoms as other countries.

“For a long time, nearly a year-and-a-half, we were different to the rest of the world, and now, we are not different from the rest of the world,” Ms Berejiklian said.

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