The Greater Sydney lockdown has been extended until midnight 30 July after an increase of COVID-19 cases. The extension of the lockdown is disappointing news for the events industry in the Greater Sydney region.
Many events have started changing their dates with further postponements expected to be announced in the coming days. Vivid Sydney has also just announced its postponement and will instead run from 17 September to 9 October 2021 instead of its planned dates in August.
The restrictions currently enforced will stay the same, the only changes being that all retail stores, except for a handful of essential exceptions are to be closed, along with all non-urgent construction. The New South Wales Premier, Gladys Berejiklian also said that from 21 July, employers must allow employees to work from home if the employee is able to do so.
Restrictions will be reviewed constantly throughout the course of the lockdown. For a detailed list of the Greater Sydney stay-at-home rules and how they affect the events industry, visit the NSW Government website here.
If you live in regional and rural areas, you must not enter Greater Sydney including the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour local government areas unless you have a reasonable excuse. If you enter these areas for any reason, stay at home rules will also apply to you for 14 days after you were last in any of these areas. For a detailed list of the regional and rural NSW restrictions, visit the NSW Government website here.
Victoria has also announced a five-day snap lockdown in order to stifle the number of COVID-19 cases, with the restrictions in place similar to that of New South Wales. Other states including Queensland and South Australia are monitoring their acquired COVID-19 cases closely. For a detailed list of restrictions and how they affect the events industry, see the list here for Queensland and here for South Australia.
While we await the end of yet another lockdown, and the disappointing postponements of industry events, now’s the perfect time to catch up on your never-ending Netflix queue or try your hand at gardening or baking the perfect banana bread. You may just come out of this lockdown with a few more new skills up your sleeve!
Photo: Adam Niescioruk
