Coronavirus: How long, how severe and how much can we take?

A person crosses an empty street in Melbourne as the city endures its sixth lockdown. Picture: AFP

To adopt Dan Andrews’s vernacular, it’s starting to look bloody cruel in Victoria. The state is facing prolonged restrictions and the only questions are how long, how severe and how much people can take.

The Premier has made it clear there will be no significant lockdown relief this week and it’s possible measures will just drag on and on and on.

Those looking for light need to dig deep into the detail of Sunday’s press conference.

Andrews still believes case numbers can be driven down, even though latest reporting shows the biggest jump in a year. This is actually good news and means Victoria doesn’t believe it has lost control of the latest wave. Yet within this optimism comes a Catch-22. There is no intention to relax any major rules until there is evidence the numbers can be contained.

Let’s call Victoria the exact opposite of NSW. While the Berejiklian government is itching to open up, the Andrews government is scratching to remain closed.

Andrews was very keen on Sunday to reiterate he would be acting on chief health officer Brett Sutton’s health advice: Sutton presents today as a very cautious man.

That means the lockdown could go for weeks more, maybe even months. The evidence suggests there is little to be positive about in the short to medium term as Andrews relies on a path lined with syringes to open up.