Victoria’s strict stage four lockdowns appear to be working, with just 113 new cases reported on Friday, and new research shows they also have strong support across the Victorian community.
This is despite some politicians, particularly members of the Victorian opposition, regularly acting like the measures do not enjoy much support in the community.
According to a Roy Morgan SMS survey of 2110 Victorians, five of the six restrictions enjoy strong support while views are split more evenly on whether Melburnians should be able to visit the homes of immediate family members.
A majority of 52 per cent of older Victorians aged 65 and over, who are prevented by this restriction from seeing their grandchildren, say Melburnians should be able to visit the homes of their immediate family. This is despite being the age group at the greatest risk during the pandemic.
Of all Victorians, 43 per cent say Melburnians should be able to visit the homes of immediate family members, which rises to 45 per cent of residents of Melbourne and 47 per cent of younger Victorians aged under 35.
For other restrictions, an overwhelming majority of Victorians say mask wearing should be compulsory in Victoria (89 per cent), schools and day care centres in Melbourne should not be open to everyone (76 per cent), Melbourne’s restaurants/hotels/ clubs/cafes should not be able to provide table service with proper social distancing (75 per cent), the 8pm–5am curfew in Melbourne should not be ended (72 per cent) and Melburnians’ should not be able to travel more than five kilometres from their homes (71 per cent).
The survey was conducted three weeks after the introduction of stringent stage four restrictions in Melbourne and as Victorian premier Daniel Andrews sought to convince parliament to grant him a 12-month extension to the declared state of emergency due to expire in mid-September.
Extending the maximum period for which a state of emergency can be declared by 12 months does not mean Victoria will remain in lockdown for another 12 months, but some politicians have tried to conflate the two to score political points.
The Victorian premier has also pointed out that other states do not have a six-month limit like Victoria and that passing the legislation to allow an extension would just bring Victoria in line with other states?
What do you think? Do you support the strict stage four lockdown restrictions in Victoria? Should there be an extension to the length of time a state of emergency should be declared in Victoria?
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