The Victorian government has prolonged the state’s pandemic declaration for three months, from April 12 to July 12. In a statement released on April 6, Premier Daniel Andrews said he was satisfied that the coronavirus disease still remained a severe risk to the state’s public health when making the decision. “This extension enables us to keep modest and sensible settings in place to reduce transmission and hospitalisation,” he said. “We don’t want rules on any longer than they need to be. We’ll continue to follow the advice to protect what we’ve built while protecting our community.” The state government will present a statement of reasons for the decision and the health advice of the chief health officer and the minister of health to the Victorian parliament. Prior to the extension, Health Minister Martin Foley signalled that the COVID-19 vaccine mandates for restaurants, cafes, pubs and nightclubs could be lifted when the latest …