Victorian cops $1652 fine for lockdown-busting fishing trip

Police handed out a fine to the Keilor Downs man after he was stopped while making a 200-kilometre round trip to the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne’s south-east on Saturday to wet a line.

Under the revised stage three restrictions introduced to greater Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire in central Victoria, residents are once again restricted to minimising their travel outside of their home.

Under new changes announced this week, residents will also be required to wear face masks while out in public.

One big change form the previous stage three lockdowns is that Victorians are permitted to go boating and fishing as a form of recreation – something that boat owners and recreational anglers were fined heavily for under previous restrictions.

However, conditions apply. You can go fishing or boating by yourself, with members of your household, or with one other person – and with face masks.

The other stipulation is that you must be able to maintain a 1.5-metre distance from anyone else, and not share any equipment.

The new rules also make mention that you cannot drive “a long way from your home” to do these activities if you have the option of doing them closer to home – with the Department of Health and Human Services saying people should be staying within their suburb of principle residence.

“While you can do these activities in metropolitan Melbourne or Mitchell Shire, you should stay close to home and use common sense and consideration when it comes to these activities,” the new rules say.

Meanwhile, NSW has cancelled all cross-border permits that allowed Victorian residents living along the border to access the Murray River.

New rules that will apply from Wednesday will make it much more difficult for Victorian residents to cross over into NSW, and new cross-border permits will be needed.

Fishing on the Murray River will not be one of the permissible activities to enter NSW.

Under state laws, NSW starts at the high water mark on the southern side of the Murray River.

Residents living in Victorian towns straddling the border could apply for a permit that would allow them to launch a boat on the Murray River to fish, but with the strict rule that they could not set foot on NSW land once out on the water.