Fewer new cases in Australia thanks to social distancing

(Patria) – The spread rate of the coronavirus in Australia has halved in recent days, said the country's Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Sunday.

The daily increase in new cases in recent days was 13-15%, which is half of the 25%-30% it was a week ago, which Morrison attributes to social distancing measures.

'These are undoubtedly still high growth rates,' he added.

Australia currently has 3,809 confirmed infections, which is 431 more than the previous day, and 16 have died. Two-thirds of the total number are linked to people who returned from overseas travel.

Neighboring New Zealand has confirmed 514 cases with one death.

The government is concerned about the rapid spread of the virus in communities, especially large ones like New South Wales and Victoria, which are home to more than 25.5 million people.

Australia has introduced a series of measures to curb the infection, and non-compliance with quarantine measures is punishable even by prison sentences, reports Reuters.