A man in his 50s and a woman in her 80s have died from COVID-19 in Victoria, as police review a decision to fine a learner driver who was in a car with her mother for breaching the "stay at home" directives.

Key points: Victoria has now recorded 10 deaths as a result of coronavirus

Victoria has now recorded 10 deaths as a result of coronavirus The state recorded 23 new cases of COVID-19 overnight, bringing the total tally to 1,158

The state recorded 23 new cases of COVID-19 overnight, bringing the total tally to 1,158 Testing criteria has been expanded and will now include teachers and people aged over 65 who are displaying symptoms

The two latest deaths have brought the state's coronavirus death toll to 10.

Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said the man, who had an underlying health condition and died in hospital, was believed to be the youngest person to die from coronavirus in Victoria.

"That is a salient and tragic lesson for those who have chronic illness that they really need to focus on protecting themselves, wherever they are," he said.

Victoria recorded 23 new cases of COVID-19 overnight, bringing the total to 1,158 confirmed cases.

The number of suspected community transmissions, where the source of the virus cannot be traced back to someone who had travelled overseas, rose by 13 cases to 88.

There are 45 people in hospital, including 11 in intensive care, and 620 people have recovered.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 14 minutes 23 seconds 14 m Premier Daniel Andrews gave an in-depth interview with state political reporter Richard Willingham on Sunday.

Learner driver with her mum shocked to be fined by police

Victoria Police issued another 108 fines in the 24 hours to 10:00am as some individuals and businesses continue to flout physical-distancing and self-isolation rules.

Police Minister Lisa Neville said the fines were mostly for obvious breaches.

"The overwhelming majority of the fines that have been issued relate to things like Airbnbs, people having parties or gatherings, groups of people in cars that shouldn't be doing that and in some cases criminals who are in cars and off to commit a crime not only being charged with those crimes but also now getting on-the-spot fines for breaching some of the [stay at home] directives," she said.

Melbourne's Flinders Street Station was almost deserted this morning as most Victorians heed the advice to stay at home. ( ABC News: Billy Draper )

But there have also been some instances of confusion around the rules.

Learner driver Hunter Reynolds, 17, said she was shocked when police pulled her over and issued her with a $1,652 fine about 30 minutes into a driving lesson with her mum.

"We hadn't gotten out of the car, we weren't planning on getting out, we were just doing a loop around and coming home," Ms Reynolds said.

"I was under the limit, had my L-plates on, so I was really surprised."

The Chief Health Officer said Hunter Reynolds's driving lesson was not an "essential activity". ( ABC News )

Hunter said the police officer was not sympathetic and told her a driving lesson "wasn't necessary travel".

Hunter's mum Sheree Reynolds said the police officer told her they were too far from home.

"We had no intentions of having contact with anyone, stopping anywhere, or breaking any of those rules. I did not think for one minute it would be incorrect to do that," she said.

"I understand the Government and everyone associated is doing the best they can with the knowledge they have, and I'm certainly not here to criticise anybody, but I think common sense is lacking in Victoria."

Sheree Reynolds said lots of her friends assumed it was okay to take their child driving under the restrictions. ( ABC News )

Police reviewing decision to issue fine

Ms Reynolds said she wanted her daughter to get practice in all conditions, including heavy rain which fell in Melbourne over the weekend.

She said a lot of her friends were still taking their children for driving lessons, assuming that was allowed.

"You're not mingling with anybody, you're driving with the person you live with, I just can't see how it's a problem," she said.

"For everybody else doing it, this is a warning. Be careful."

Under Victoria's stage three shutdown measures, people are only allowed to leave the house for food and supplies, medical care and care giving, exercise and work or education.

Restaurants and cafes are only allowed to sell takeaway and other businesses must comply with strict physical-distancing rules.

When asked about driving lessons at a press conference this afternoon, Victoria's chief health officer Brett Sutton said it was "not an essential activity".

"We're all putting off those things, lots of things that we would like to do, that we might prefer to do in ordinary circumstances but this is not the world we live in at the moment," he said.

Victorian urged to stay home at Easter

He also reiterated that people should avoid travelling to regional areas over the Easter long weekend.

"Those communities in regional Victoria have a right not to have potential exposure to imported cases," he said.

However, he said those who owned or had already booked a house they were travelling to, solely with their immediate family, could do so provided they took every step to reduce the risk of potential transmission.

"But we are saying, if you don't have to leave home please don't leave home, we certainly don't want people going to communities and causing concern because they are not following the directives that we have laid out," he said.

"If they're not mixing with new groups of people then that risk is manageable and acceptable. But a new mix of people, new bookings, they are not allowed."

Victoria COVID-19 snapshot Confirmed cases so far: 19,728

Confirmed cases so far: 19,728 Confirmed active cases: 1,483

Confirmed active cases: 1,483 Deaths: 701

Deaths: 701 Suspected cases of community transmission where the source is unknown: 4,306

Suspected cases of community transmission where the source is unknown: 4,306 Cases in hospital: 169

Cases in hospital: 169 Intensive care patients: 17

Intensive care patients: 17 Active cases in regional Victoria: 72

Active cases in regional Victoria: 72 Active cases in healthcare workers: 251

Active cases in healthcare workers: 251 Active cases linked to aged care outbreaks: 763

Active cases linked to aged care outbreaks: 763 Tests since pandemic began: More than 2.44 million Updated Thursday September 10 Latest Victorian Government info

Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton said the fine would be reviewed to see if discretion should be applied.

"Although we're satisfied that was a lawfully issued infringement … we'll be looking at whether discretion could or should be applied in this circumstances," he said.

"It's quite possible it [the fine] will be withdrawn because the public is now aware they can't be doing that activity."

Deputy Commissioner Patton said the Chief Health Officer was responsible for setting the rules and approving any exemptions.

"The Chief Health Officer has stated that taking driving lessons is not one of those exemptions, so you can't be out doing it," he said.

"The only way you could potentially have some driving practice is if you're applying one of those exemptions that exist.

"You cannot go out and go driving 40 minutes away. It is against the law."

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Police Minister Lisa Neville warned Victorians to stop looking for loopholes.

"People just need to remember there are four clear reasons that you can leave your house. Those reasons have not changed," she said.

"The more we stick to the rules, the less Victoria Police have to issue fines but also the quicker we can come out of this and minimise the risk to life with this virus."

Health Minister Jenny Mikakos agreed.

"There are only four good reasons to leave home and that doesn't include taking your child on a driver learning experience," she said.

"Unless you're driving to the supermarket with them to pick up your weekly groceries, you should be staying at home.

Officers redeployed as public transport usage plummets

Officers conducted another 983 spot checks across the state in the last 24-hour reporting period as part of Operation Sentinel.

It takes the total number of checks to more than 14,000 since they began on March 21.

Fines of up to $9,913 can be issued for businesses and $1,652 for individuals who fail to adhere to directives designed to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Ms Neville said some protective service officers (PSO) would be redeployed this week to join police officers conducting foot patrols in shopping centres and commercial areas.

She said patronage on public transport was down between 85 and 90 per cent.

"We know that we've got underutilised PSOs at the moment and we want to put them to better use," she said.

"They'll be out looking at things like commercial burglary. That's been on the increase. We know we've got a lot of empty buildings."

School staff and firefighters to be tested under new criteria

Victorian teachers and people aged over 65 will now be eligible for coronavirus tests after the state announced it would expand its testing criteria.

The new criteria, announced late Sunday night, will mean all public-facing school staff, firefighters and anyone aged 65 or older will now be eligible for a coronavirus test if they display symptoms.

It builds on the expansions announced last week, which broadened the testing criteria to include police officers and people working in residential care, childcare, child protection, homelessness and disability support.

Victoria's firefighters, teachers and people aged over 65 will now be tested for coronavirus if they are displaying symptoms. ( ABC News: Margaret Burin )

Testing was initially focused on returned overseas travellers, those who had been in contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case and healthcare workers, due to the limited supply of testing kits.

"The number of community acquired cases contracted from an unknown source is continuing to rise," Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said.

"The expansion of the testing criteria will allow us to get a clearer picture of how much the virus is circulating."

Professor Sutton said the new testing criteria did not mean stage three restrictions should be relaxed.

"The reverse is true, we must continue these actions to flatten the curve," he said.

"We're in the place we are today because of what we've done at this time. If we break the rules now it well may change the future."

Professor Sutton said the testing criteria would likely be expanded again "very soon" but he wanted to make sure the system was able to meet the demand and provide quick results.

There are now 34 screening clinics across Victoria and 12 labs processing coronavirus tests.

Professor Sutton said they would probably find more cases with the expanded testing criteria but he was "crossing his fingers" that in the long term it declined.

Calls for ATAR to be scrapped

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said he hoped Year 12 students would still be able to receive an ATAR. ( ABC News: Casey Briggs, file photo )

Future Schools Alliance, a national think tank which has 10 Victorian schools listed as members, has called for the Year 12 ATAR rankings to be scrapped over concerns that children who do not come from wealthy families could be further disadvantaged.

"It's blatantly unfair," the group's director Peter Hutton told ABC Radio Melbourne.

"The tutoring businesses are going through the roof. People who are actual teachers of VCE are doing online tutoring after hours and that is an absolute booming industry.

"Those people who can afford that tutoring will have a huge advantage."

On Sunday, Premier Daniel Andrews told the ABC his aim was to ensure Year 12 students received an ATAR score, which is used for university entrance, but they may have to wait until early next year.

"If they can get an ATAR, if not within this calendar year, then very soon thereafter," Mr Andrews said.

But Mr Hutton said the ATAR "should be off the table".

"Those with money are going to blitz it this year," he said.

"I cannot stand by … without people having a deep understanding of how insidious it is."

Mr Sutton said a Future Schools Alliance working group would come up with an alternative solution, in a report due to be released on April 27.

He called on "Australia's most creative educators" to help put together the report.

Melbourne researchers develop rapid test for immunity

Meanwhile, researchers from Monash University and Alfred Health have created a rapid test to determine a person's immunity to COVID-19 and how severe their symptoms might be.

Monash University's Menno van Zelm said it would play a crucial role in helping infected healthcare workers return to the frontline, by determining when it was safe to go back to work.

"Healthcare workers … are at high risk of getting infected and once that's detected they have to be removed from the workforce," Associate Professor van Zelm said.

"Hopefully with such a test, we can determine early who is immune to the virus and get back to work."

The same-day blood test, similar to that for influenza, looks for immune system cells, known as memory cells, which make antibodies to fight against viruses.

By studying these cells, researchers say they will be able to predict who will get a mild version of the disease and who may need care in ICU.

"It's really to determine how the immune response is generated to the virus," Associate Professor van Zelm said.

"We really want to employ it to understand what is different between patients with a really mild form of disease versus severe form of disease."

Scientists are also hopeful the test can play a role in the race for a coronavirus vaccine.

"Down the line it can really help us understand whether the current vaccines which are in clinical trials, if they induce protective immunity or not."

The test is still undergoing trials, but Associate Professor van Zelm believes that with sufficient funding it could be rolled out widely within months.

"We're testing it now so that in the next one to two months we know exactly what it can do and then it's really a matter of being able, with funding and resourcing, to upscale it."