Lismore lockdown to end, confirms NSW Health

State MP Janelle Saffin says the decision will be a relief for businesses and families.

Labor member for Lismore Janelle Saffin says Lismore will come out of lockdown at midnight on Thursday.

NSW Health has issued a statement confirming stay-at-home orders would be lifted for the Lismore are from midnight tonight.

It comes after Lismore MP Janelle Saffin said she had received the news from NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard’s office on Wednesday afternoon.

“The stay-at-home orders introduced last week for the Albury and Lismore local government areas will no longer apply from midnight tonight,” NSW Health said in a statement.

“We thank the communities of Albury and Lismore for their co-operation and for coming forward for testing in large numbers.”

NSW Health warned those two shires would continue to operate under “some restrictions to ensure community safety” including mandatory mask-wearing at indoor non-residential premises, 4 sqm rules indoors and 2 sqm rules outdoors at venues.

“We need all people throughout NSW to continue to come forward for testing at the first sign of even mild symptoms,” NSW Health said.

“High vaccination rates are also essential to reduce the risk of transmission and protect the health and safety of the community.”

Lismore was placed in a seven day lockdown on Thursday last week after people who were infectious with Covid-19 were out in the community, including at a Goonellabah school.

The Tweed and Byron shires meanwhile remain under stay at home orders.

Ms Saffin said she wasn’t surprised by the decision to end lockdown for Lismore because case numbers remained low while testing had ramped up.

“I feel good about that obviously for our businesses, for our families, everybody,” she said.

Ms Saffin said she hoped her calls for a regional roadmap that was “particularised” for regional areas were being taken seriously by the state government.

Greens MP for Ballina Tamara Smith and Nationals member for Tweed Geoff Provest have also called for more restrictions on Sydneysiders travelling to the region until vaccination rates increase.

“We all agreed for vaccines to go back to Sydney … we were gracious about it,” Ms Saffin said.

“We’re saying now, step up and make sure we get our share and make sure we can lift our vaccination rates.”

Ms Saffin said she was involved in a meeting with Deputy Premier John Barilaro, to whom she wrote about the issues.

“We were taken seriously yesterday when we had the meeting with the Deputy Premier,” she said.

“He took us seriously and that was the frame of our whole discussion about the regional roadmap.”