Coronavirus Australia: Daniel Andrews hangs tough on restrictions

Daniel Andrews flags a relaxation of physical distancing restrictions after May 11 only if 100,000 Victorians are tested.

Premier Daniel Andrews says 97 per cent of Victorian parents had been keeping their children home. Picture: Getty Images

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has urged everyone in his state with the mildest respiratory symptoms to get themselves tested for COVID-19, flagging a relaxation of physical distancing restrictions after May 11 only if a massive push to test 100,000 Victorians in a fortnight shows the state has beaten the virus.

Despite a relaxation of social distancing rules in NSW, where groups including two adults will now be able to visit other households, Mr Andrews said there would be no easing of restrictions in his state until after Victoria's state of emergency lapses on May 11.

Victoria confirmed two new cases of COVID-19 in 24 hours to Tuesday, bringing the state’s total to 1,351. NSW confirmed five new cases, bringing its total to 3,009.

Mr Andrews said his government would use 45 health department testing centres at hospitals and more than 60 pop-up testing centres at GP clinics, as well as workplace testing of health and aged care workers, to achieve the 100,000 tests between April 27 and May 11.

“We're going to be doing workplace testing, we're going to be doing testing in lots of innovative ways, taking the tests to the people rather than the other way around,” the Premier said.

“Anyone with any symptoms, even really mild symptoms, should come forward … and get tested.

“Follow the rules and get tested, they’re the most important things over the next fortnight, and once we get that data back, we will have options, options so many parts of the world don't have, options that are hard-won, options that can only be achieved if people continue to do the right thing.

“This is not over, and any sense of complacency would simply be wrong, it would run the risk of giving back all the great gains that we've made.”

Approximately 5,000 tests were conducted in Victoria on Monday, meaning testing will have to ramp up to more than 7,300 tests a day including on weekends, if the 100,000 test goal is to be achieved.

Mr Andrews said Victoria had the capacity to do as many as 12,000 tests per day.

“So if you do the maths on that, there's more than enough,” he said.

“I'm not for a moment describing it as an easy task, it's not, but you could get many thousands of tests done quite quickly, because of course you've got many, many health workers.”

Mr Andrews said extensive testing would need to continue beyond May 11.

“If we get at the end of this two week period, numbers that satisfy us that it's safe to make some changes, we will then need to continue to test to work out, firstly to work out should there be further changes down the track beyond the 11th of May, and just to keep an eye on things to make sure that we haven't got disease out there in the Victorian community. That ongoing surveillance will be really important,” he said.

Mr Andrews urged anyone wanting to know more about getting tested for COVID-19 to phone the Victorian Health Department hotline on 1800 675 398.

Mr Andrews also defended Victoria’s hard line stance on schools amid calls from the Morrison government for children to return to the classroom, saying 97 per cent of Victorian parents had been keeping their children home from school, and that up to 50 per cent had been doing so ahead of the Easter school holidays.

“So the notion that just because some people in Canberra say so, we can just flick a switch and all the schools will be open again, I just don't think that would happen,” the Premier said.

“We've got a consistent set of policies and settings, we've got a consistent message and a very consistent position on schools.

“I think that is serving us well. Can it change? Yes, but not right now, and not without a proper consideration of the test results we're going to get over the next couple of weeks.”