Masks off outdoors, back to the office and hospitality welcomes 300

Masks are coming off outdoors, some of our workers are returning to the office and our hospitality venues will be able to welcome back significant numbers of patrons from tomorrow.

There were several measures which will be welcomed by our small business community, announced by Premier Daniel Andrews during his press conference this morning.

 The Premier announced the following changes come into place from midnight tonight:

• Face masks will no longer be required outside in Victoria, providing physical distancing can be maintained. The requirement to wear masks inside and on public transport remains

• We will start returning to the workplace. 25 percent of staff will be able to be in the office, with 75 percent still needing to work from home. Public service workers will not be coming back just yet. They will remain working from home so as to create additional space and capacity for the private sector

• Cinemas and small galleries can open for up to 150 people per space. Drive-in cinemas will have no patron caps

• Community venues, such as libraries, can have 150 people inside, 300 people outside

• Gaming machine venues will be able to have up to 150 people inside, but every second electronic gaming machine will be turned off, so as to keep a distance between patrons

• Up to 15 visitors can gather in homes in Victoria. Then from December 13, up to 30 people can gather in homes, in time for Christmas and Hanukkah

• Outdoor gatherings will increase to 50 people.

Hospitality
There were significant wins announced for the hospitality industry.

• Indoors:

  • Venues with less than 200 square metres of floorspace are subject to density quotient of one person per two square metres up to a total of 50 patrons with no group limit.

  • QR codes must be used for venues using the small indoor venue density quotient.

  • Venues with 200 square metres of floorspace or larger are subject to a density quotient of one per four square metres with up to 150 patrons and no group limit.

• Outdoors:

  • Up to 300 patrons per venue outdoors, subject to density quotient of one per two square metres.

• Total venue capacity cannot exceed 300 patrons, however, including both indoor and outdoor spaces.

The Premier flagged that further changes will be announced on December 6. You can. read the Premier’s full statement form Sunday at the DHHS website.