SYDNEY (REUTERS) - Australia will keep in place restrictions implemented to curb the spread of the coronavirus for at least four more weeks, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Thursday (April 16), dashing speculation the country’s sustained low growth in new cases could spur a quicker return to normal.

Australia has averted the high numbers of coronavirus casualties reported in other countries around the world after closing its borders and imposing strict "social distancing" measures for the past month.

Restaurants, bars and other "non-essential" businesses have been shuttered and public gatherings of more than two people banned under the threat of fines and even prison – measures that are expected to double the country’s unemployment rate by mid-year.

In response, the daily rate of reported new infections has steadied in the low single digits, from about 25 per cent several weeks ago, for a total of about 6,500 infections, including 63 deaths.

Still, Mr Morrison said the rules would not be relaxed until national testing capacity has been increased, contact tracing of known Covid-19 cases expanded and a response to any future outbreak fully prepared.

"We want to be very clear with Australians, baseline restrictions we have in place at the moment, there are no plans to change those for the next four weeks," Mr Morrison said during a televised media briefing.

Mr Morrison said officials were formulating a slow wind-back of the restrictions, but did not specify which could be eased first, although he has in recent days pushed state and territory leaders to re-open schools.

Mr Morrison has cited medical advice that children carry a low risk of transmitting the virus as he advocated for the re-opening schools to help boost the country’s economy, which is headed for its first recession in three decades.

However, some leaders of the country’s eight states and territories – which administer schools – have departed from that policy and ordered schools remain shut to all but the children of "essential" workers, including those in the health and grocery sectors.

In Victoria, the country’s second most populous state where officials have told parents to keep children at home if possible, just 3 per cent of children attended school on Tuesday, the first day after the Easter break. Students in other states and territories remain on mid-term vacation.

An agreement on the issue was not reached at a meeting on Thursday of the national cabinet, made up of state and federal leaders, formed to tackle the crisis.

SUPPRESSION STRATEGY

Australia’s Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy said Australia’s choice of a "suppression" strategy, as opposed to a full shutdown of public life as adopted by neighbour New Zealand, could free the country of the virus without hefty economic penalties.

"We don’t feel the need to hold the country very seriously in lockdown until we have no cases," Dr Murphy said. "If that happens with the measures we are doing now, that would be fantastic."

In Sydney, police entered the Villawood immigration detention centre to end rooftop and hunger strike protests begun by some refugee inmates on Saturday.

Three detainees who refused to come down from the roof were arrested and taken into custody.

Detainees were angry the government has refused pleas to release them from the centre amid the health crisis, and also denied requests for Covid-19 testing in the centre.

While some countries have released some non-violent detainees from prisons and detention centres, Australia has so far refused to do so.

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