ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr will declare a state of emergency in Canberra in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
The territory’s health minister will sign off on the declaration on Monday morning after Victoria announced a state of emergency, Mr Barr told ABC radio.
It comes after Canberra health authorities confirmed the national capital’s second case of coronavirus, with another man in his 30s testing positive on Sunday.
Mr Barr said the declaration of a public health emergency would give Canberra’s chief health officer more powers to enforce isolation and quarantines.
“I want to be clear at this point … any directions under the public health act would be the last resort measure,” he said.
“At this point, we will continue to focus on containing the spread of the virus.”
Mr Barr flagged potential changes to the operation of the October ACT election, as well as its legal system, saying it would be important to be consistent with other jurisdictions.
“Exactly how the election will be run may be different from past practise,” he said.
AAP
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