NSW announces restrictions on restaurants, cafes and other venues, as well as weddings and funerals

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has announced new restrictions on restaurants, cafes and other venues, as well as new limits for weddings and funerals.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has announced new restrictions on restaurants, cafes and other venues, as well as new limits for weddings and funerals.

Ms Berejiklian said tighter measures for pubs that come into effect at midnight will also apply to cafes, restaurants and other indoor hospitality venues from next Friday, July 24. This includes restrictions that limit groups to a maximum of 10 people.

“We hope that people will take on advice from today, but we are giving businesses the next few days to get themselves organised,” Ms Berejiklian said.

She said the reason for the limit was because they needed to make sure that everyone was seated when they were in a venue and there was less chance of people getting up and mingling when there were smaller groups.

Weddings and corporate events would also be restricted to a maximum of 150 people, while funerals and places of worship can only have 100 people.

Ms Berejiklian said funerals were “emotional times” and there seemed to be more mingling because everyone is known to each other.

“Weddings are seated for the duration of the event whereas at funerals, depending on religion and ceremonies, there are different aspects to the service,” she said.

She said how people interacted together, for example at burial sites, was more complex than at weddings, where everyone could stay seated and no dancing was allowed.

“Unfortunately people have to make decisions about whether or not they wait or proceed with existing restrictions,” Ms Berejiklian said.

More than 200 new coronavirus infections have been identified in NSW in the past month and Ms Berejiklian has said she does not want to lockdown the state down again.

An outbreak at Sydney’s Crossroads Hotel in Casula has infected more than 40 people and seen more than 20 pubs, restaurants and other venues put on high alert.

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Premier Gladys Berejiklian has announced new restrictions on hospitality venues. Photo: Gaye Gerard/NCA Newswire

“We have to appreciate that once this disease gets into the community it moves very, very quickly and in ways in which we can’t always predict,” Ms Berejiklian said.

“So therefore what we need to do in New South Wales is minimise the risk of those activities which we know super spread the virus, those activities indoors which we know act as a catalyst, and this will also take pressure off our health authorities … in the number of people they actually need to contact race as a result of that.”

On Friday, July 17, NSW confirmed eight new cases had been identified in the 24 hours up to 8pm yesterday, and a further five extra cases since then.

Of the eight new cases, two people were in hotel quarantine and the other six were from community transmission.