Victoria has recorded 113 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.
Sadly, the death tally grows with 15 people having died of coronavirus-related causes in that time.
The number follows 90 new cases on Wednesday, 70 new cases on Tuesday, 73 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, 114 new cases on Sunday and 94 new infections and on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the Victorian government could lift a nightly curfew on Melbourne at the end of this month according to a leaked draft of a purported two-stage plan to ease the state out of its coronavirus lockdown.
The document, published on Thursday by the Herald Sun, signals that from September 14, a range of small concessions could be made for metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria.
These include allowing libraries to open and expanding the time for exercise outside the home to two hours a day, from one hour now.
Two people or a household will be able to meet outdoors for social interaction and single persons or single-parent households will be allowed to have a visitor to their home.
Then, from September 28, the current 8pm to 5am curfew in Melbourne could be lifted and the phased return of primary and secondary students to schools begin, according to the draft.
Premier Daniel Andrews is preparing to announce the government's plan for a pathway out of the current lockdown on Sunday, when he releases separate roadmaps for Melbourne and regional Victoria which are under stage four and stage three restrictions, respectively.
On Wednesday, Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton warned the need for mandatory mask-wearing could remain in Melbourne and regional Victoria beyond the scheduled end of the current lockdown on September 13.
"I think we'll see masks for the next month in one form or another," he said. "It may not be all settings at all times."
- with AAP
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