Canberra records lowest number of cases since August

Chief Minister Andrew Barr has cautioned it’s too early to celebrate just yet after Canberra recorded the lowest number of new cases since August.

The ACT recorded seven new locally acquired cases of Covid-19 on Monday, all linked to other known cases or transmission sites. Four cases spent some time infectious in the community.

Five people, aged from under 12 to in their 70s, are in hospital requiring treatment. Two people are in intensive care.

But Mr Barr said it was too early to declare the decrease in cases as a trend.

It comes as the territory reached a major vaccine milestone with 80 per cent of Canberrans vaccinated with at least one dose of the Covid-19 jab – 55 per cent of residents are fully vaccinated.

Canberrans however are no closer to knowing when restrictions will be eased, with Mr Barr telling reporters the “clear” advice was to wait until 80 per cent of the population was fully vaccinated to avoid strain on the territory’s hospital system.

“We're not yet in a position to provide the level of certainty that we would like to,” the Chief Minister said.

“We now have a much clearer picture of the significant risks associated with moving too fast at 70 per cent. The clear advice is that it is prudent to wait until 80 per cent before making major changes.”

Further information about the easing of restrictions is set to be announced on October 1.

The chief minister warned it would be “naive” to think the ACT’s health system would not face the same “extreme pressure” that Victoria and NSW have experienced in its transition out of lockdown.

“We’re also very focused on the capacity of our health system, the implications of the cross-border demand on our health system coming from regional NSW, and I do note that both the NSW Premier and the Victorian Premier have been very clear that they expect the demand on their health systems to be unlike anything Australia has ever experienced before,” he told reporters.

“Extreme pressure is coming to NSW and Victoria’s health systems … and it would naive to think that the ACT system won’t also come under pressure.”

He said as the ACT moves through the stages as set out in the national plan, Canberrans could expect gathering sizes to increase in addition to a gradual return to office buildings and students to schools – when it was safe to do so.

But Mr Barr flagged the easing of restrictions could be stalled at any point if the ACT faced “significant outbreaks”.

The total number of cases linked to the current outbreak has risen to 625.

Chief health officer Kerryn Coleman said 401 people have recovered from Covid-19 and 224 cases remain active.