It's not a roadmap, it's a pathway forward.
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The ACT's lockdown has lifted, as set out in a plan to reopen the ACT government has pushed hard to differentiate from easing restrictions in surrounding NSW.
Though it is the official end of the territory's nine-week lockdown, Chief Minister Andrew Barr on Thursday reiterated it was "a gentle and measured step forward", with more significant easing of restrictions to come in two weeks' time.
"[Friday] is not the end of the pandemic. The virus will continue to spread in the community," Mr Barr said, stressing the next two weeks would be critical for 90,000 Canberrans who had not yet received their second dose.
"We want to see our world-leading first-dose vaccination rate translate into a world-leading fully-vaccinated rate," he said.
What am I allowed to do in Canberra from Friday?
Social freedoms will be increased, allowing up to five people to visit another household and outdoor gatherings of up to 25 people, while aged care residents can also have up to two visitors again, so long as they are vaccinated.
Dining in will be on the menu once more as restaurants welcome back up to 25 patrons indoors or 50 outdoors, and hairdressers and personal care services expect to be in demand, able to open to five customers at a time.
You can get back to gyms and outdoor sports training in groups of up to 25, as well as swimming laps, with the same 25-person cap, and two swimmers per lane.
Fifty people can attend a funeral and up to 25 can attend weddings, excluding staff, while places of worship will be able to host up to 25 people.
Non-essential retail will be allowed to operate click-and-collect and click-and-deliver services, with two people from one household allowed to enter stores by booked appointment. Payments can also be made at the time of collection, rather than just online.
Is the ACT only reopening to fully vaccinated people?
No. Canberrans can participate in the territory's reopening regardless of their vaccination status.
The ACT is not following a model in place in NSW, where certain freedoms are only available to fully-vaccinated people, children under 16 and those who are medically exempt, before December.
The chief minister has said this would be difficult to enforce, as well as a human rights issue, and it would be unfair to exclude Canberrans who wanted to be vaccinated but were unable to access doses due to supply issues.
On Thursday the territory's first-dose vaccination rate for those over 12 had reached over 98 per cent.
Mr Barr urged people who were not yet vaccinated to remain cautious during the territory's next stage.
"With this increased activity and interaction between people, the risk of contracting the virus increases, and this is especially the case for the 90,000 eligible Canberrans who have only had one dose of the vaccine," he said.
"And it is also important for the 70,000 children under 12 who are not yet vaccinated, so please be careful."
Are we using vaccination thresholds to reopen?
Not in the same way NSW have structured their plan.
Under the NSW roadmap, a first round of restrictions were eased for vaccinated people from Monday, after the state hit 70 per cent vaccination coverage of the population aged 16 and over.
The rules will be further relaxed for vaccinated people the Monday after 80 per cent vaccination coverage is reached, and then eased for people who are unvaccinated from December 1.
Under the ACT's pathway forward, the end of lockdown was planned "when we expect" 70 per cent double-dose vaccination coverage nationally, and 80 per cent in the territory.
Restrictions will ease further from October 29, when the surrounding region was forecast to achieve 80 per cent vaccination coverage.
It's also worth noting the ACT is reporting its percentage of the eligible population vaccinated, so those 12 and older.
What can people in NSW do that I can't?
All of the current NSW freedoms are contingent on participants being fully vaccinated, under 16 or medically exempt.
People can have up to 10 visitors and outdoor gatherings of up to 30 people are allowed.
Retail has reopened to in-store customers, while weddings can have up to 100 people, as can funerals.
Most NSW students will also return quicker than their ACT peers, who will follow a staggered return throughout October and November.
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