Australia will ease social distancing restrictions in a three-step process, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday. Canberra is aiming to remove most curbs by July and get nearly one million people back to work amid a decline in coronavirus cases.
The country in March imposed strict social distancing restrictions, which were coupled with the closure of the borders. With fewer than 20 new infections each day, Morrison said Australian states and territories on Friday agreed a road map to remove most of the curbs.
It will be up to Australia’s various states and territories to decide when to begin implementing each stage. Each step will likely be separated by four-week transitions.
Several states, including Queensland and South Australia, said they will ease restrictions from Monday. The most populated states said looser restrictions would not be adopted for several more days at least, Reuters reports.