Border reopening pushed as NSW records single locally acquired COVID-19 case

Border reopening is being pushed as New South Wales recorded just one new case of COVID-19 community transmission on Monday.

The state recorded a total of four new infections during the reporting period including three returned travellers in hotel quarantine and one locally acquired case linked to a known cluster in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

The locally acquired case had been in self-isolation while infectious.

Authorities have encouraged residents to continue coming forward for testing, as just 9,316 tests were processed during the reporting period, compared with 14,426 in the previous 24 hours.

“Testing numbers have dropped over the past two weeks, which is a concern particularly in areas like South Western, Western and South-Eastern Sydney,” NSW Health said in a statement.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Sunday pleaded with her Queensland counterpart Annastacia Palaszczuk to reconsider the border closure as NSW continues to record low rates of community transmission.

“I don’t understand when case numbers are so low why you would even have borders up especially when you hear those heartbreaking stories of people separated from their relatives,” Berejiklian told reporters.

“Having a border between Queensland and NSW is unnecessarily hurting citizens on both sides of the border.”

Berejiklian thanked the South Australian and Northern Territory governments for indicating a path forward for NSW residents and appealed to Palaszczuk to do the same.

NSW Health is currently treating 81 people with COVID-19, six of whom are in intensive care.