ACT COVID restrictions are at the mercy of NSW

It's a saying that's been bandied around for years, but has become particularly prominent throughout the pandemic.

Almost two years ago, when the COVID-19 pandemic started, Mr Barr stressed to Canberrans that the ACT needed to have consistent restrictions with NSW.

"Consistency with NSW [is needed] so that all of those people who live and work and interact on either side of the ACT and NSW border have the same set of rules," Mr Barr said on March 22, 2020.

The ACT is completely at the mercy of what NSW decides to do. It is fact that has been acknowledged by the Chief Minister.

And so it was the case on Friday, when the ACT brought forward changes to restrictions after NSW's surprise announcement on Thursday.

These included dropping density limits from Friday and mask mandates are also expected to be relaxed in the ACT next week.

Mr Barr said the only impact the NSW decision had on the ACT was on the timing of the territory's eased restrictions. He said the changes were expected to be announced next week, when NSW was also expected to ease COVID rules.

But last week when The Canberra Times reported density limits and masks mandates could be scrapped at the end of February government officials were quick to say this would not be the case.

Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith did multiple media interviews to clarify the only restrictions the ACT was considering easing were around dancing and a requirement to be seated while eating and drinking in hospitality venues.

But Friday's announcement was a complete backflip. Density limits have already gone and mask rules will be relaxed next week.

Of course, a week can be long time in a pandemic and things can absolutely change. But what exactly has changed?

On the surface it appears very little has changed and there certainly hasn't been a great improvement.

There's been a slight uptick in daily case numbers but its largely stablised, the booster vaccination rate is about 4 per cent higher at 62.9 per cent and as another school week passes there hasn't been a drastic surge in COVID cases.

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But when the surrounding state changes restrictions what choice does the ACT have?

How can the leader and chief health officer of a place of about 430,000 people justify having harsher rules than a state of 8 million, especially when people in that state come to the ACT every single day and vice versa.

It would be very politically unpopular.

Businesses would also be livid if NSW had greater freedoms. It would provide plenty of fuel to the opposition.

ACT chief health officer Kerryn Coleman wasn't on hand on Friday to explain further about the change in health advice.

It is right to questions the motivations behind the change, especially when the announcement was so wildly different to what was anticipated one week ago.

But at the same time, Canberrans would completely understand if the decision was made due to NSW. ACT leaders shouldn't fear admitting this.

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