Live Breaking News: State of the nation: 13m locked down

One state has just introduced a tough new lockdown rule that may well be Australia's strictest of its kind during the pandemic so far.

One state has introduced a tough new lockdown rule that may be Australia's harshest of its type yet.

South Australians can now only exercise within 2.5kms of their home. That's less than half the distance Melburnians could roam during that city's mammoth 2020 lockdown and four times less that of Sydneysiders right now. 

Half of Australia’s population is, or soon will be, in lockdown. SA announced a lockdown this morning while Victoria has extended its lockdown and there is no end in sight for Sydney.

Now the regional NSW town of Orange is on the lockdown list after covid seeped out of Sydney hitching a ride on a delivery driver. 

The central west NSW town and the surrounding areas go into a seven-day shutdown from midnight. 

It comes as Australia's internal borders slam shut.

Queensland and Tasmania have announced closed borders to South Australia;  WA now demands people from Adelaide go into 14-day quarantine; while Victoria has further tightened restrictions with Sydney meaning even Victorians now cannot return to their home state.

There are currently about 13 million Australians in lockdown.

Follow our Victoria's live blog below, or NSW's here.