Protests that took place over the weekend could mean a further easing of coronavirus restrictions is delayed.
Thousands of people across the country marched for Black Lives Matter in a rally organised to raise awareness of Indigenous deaths in custody, while commemorating the death of African American man George Floyd.Crowds were seen in close proximity as they marched in cities and towns.
The National Cabinet, which is made up of state leaders and health authorities, is set to meet on Friday, with suggestions it was set to see a more rapid scaling back of restrictions, given the number of new infections in Australia is low.
But the National Cabinet now wants to wait and see whether the protests have led to any outbreaks of COVID-19 before easing restrictions further.It’s expected to take up to two weeks to know whether the rallies have sparked new cases.The delay in restrictions could cost the economy $1 billion and stop thousands of people from going back to work, The Australian reports.
Ultimately, it’s up to each state and territory no whether more restrictions will be eased.Only two new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed on Tuesday and both the cases were in returned travelers in hotel quarantine in NSW.
There is a total of 7,267 cases in Australia.