VICTORIA shut its borders to New South Wales and the ACT on Sunday night, but cross-border residents will not need a reason to leave home under the latest crackdown.
Victoria's Acting Chief Health Officer declared all of NSW and the ACT red zones under Victoria's travel permit system from 11.59pm on Sunday, but the border bubble will remain in place.
"If you live in the NSW cross-border area, you can enter Victoria without a permit but you must travel with proof of address," the Victorian Department of Health said in a statement on Sunday afternoon.
"If you are entering Victoria as a NSW cross-border community resident, authorities ask you to stay within the Victorian cross-border area at all times.
"If you are entering New South Wales as a Victorian cross-border community resident, stay within the NSW cross-border area. If you travel beyond this area, a red-zone permit will be required for re-entry into Victoria.
"Workers in select industries are eligible for a specified worker permit, including forestry, agriculture, essential services, freight, rail and vaccine distribution."
The government said a strong police presence would continue at Victoria's borders and airports.
Health authorities announced the effective border closure after NSW recorded 77 new local COVID cases on Sunday.
"We don't want this virus here in our state," Premier Daniel Andrews said.
"Safety has to come first. It's not like if you live on the Murray or the South Australian border you can't get COVID.
"You absolutely can. So it's for your safety as well.
"We're doing everything we can to keep the virus out of the community you live in and indeed out of our state."
Member for Mildura Ali Cupper said she accepted the need for a border closure "as long as it's fair, proportionate and balanced".
"That's what I've always said," the independent MP said.
"I can cope with border closures if they are done this way and they are clearly based on objectively verifiable health advice.
"Let's stay as safe as we can because we want to protect our businesses and keep our kids at school, and we want to be able to protect the mental health of Victorians who experienced a COVID horror show last year.
"We don't need another one, so I accept the need for this border closure."
Australia's Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said federal officials did not back Victoria shutting the NSW border.
"We don't support it at a Commonwealth level," he told reporters in Canberra.
"It's not an easy thing to do to close the border with NSW. There are many, many places that people can cross that border so I'm sure it will be a decision not taken lightly."
-- with AAP
