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Saturday was meant to be the day Greater Sydney emerged from a two-week lockdown, but instead the city recorded another 50 cases and woke to its toughest COVID-19 restrictions in more than a year.

The new cases were diagnosed from more than 42,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Friday, and include 37 people who were active in the community for all or part of their infectious period.

It is the worst day of the current virus outbreak, prompting the NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian to again warn lockdown is likely to be extended.

"The only conclusion we can draw is that things are going to get worse before they get better," she told reporters on Saturday.

She again appealed for Sydneysiders to stop bending the lockdown rules, citing at least two people who police caught holding illegal gatherings overnight.

"The vast majority of those (new) cases are close family or friends of people who have COVID," she told reporters.

"If you truly love your parents, your sisters, your best friends, please stick to the rules."

The state's health department on Saturday afternoon issued warnings for nearly 30 exposure sites across Sydney.

They include a Penrith Barbeques Galore, a Bunnings in Padstow, a Centennial Park cafe and other sites in Sydney's west, southwest, south, east and northwest.

Sydneysiders are now required to wear masks in all indoor areas of construction sites, with face coverings also required in lifts and lobbies of apartment blocks from July 13.

Fines or infringement notices were handed out to 167 people over the reporting period, including 67 in southwestern Sydney and about a dozen in the state's north.

"Cutting corners, flouting the rules, is going to prolong the lockdown, and that's the last thing any of us want to see," the premier said.

"We are not asking for much given the situation we are all in."

Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant made an impassioned plea for people to be truthful with contact tracers, after the premier said the "vast majority" of new cases were being obstructive.

"We know that everyone is human and makes poor decisions at certain times, but please don't compound that initial mistake by not telling us the truth the first time," Dr Chant said.

"At the moment, as we're trying to get ahead of the spread of the virus, we haven't got time to waste unpicking stories, going back and cross-checking and verifying."

Some 47 COVID-19 patients in NSW have been admitted to hospital, of which 16, including a teenager, are in intensive care and four are ventilated, including one person aged in their 20s.

"We have a number of young people in ICU at the moment and that is a phenomena we have not seen before," the premier said.

However no one who has received two doses of either vaccine has been hospitalised, Dr Chant said.

When announcing the tough new restrictions on Friday, the premier said a premature reopening of Greater Sydney could result in thousands of coronavirus cases, hospitalisations and deaths.

The new rules limit exercise to groups of two and ban browsing at shops, among other restrictions.

They also permit only one person per household to leave the home for shopping each day, and limit funerals to 10 people.

© AAP 2021

Beloved Australian radio presenter and television personality Jonathan 'Jono' Coleman has died, aged 65, after a four-year battle with prostate cancer.

Born in Hackney in the UK, Coleman won many fans and accolades during a long and varied career in both Australia and Britain.

He first burst into the world of broadcast in 1979 as part of the original line-up of Simon Townsend's Wonder World, and two years later started presenting radio show Off The Record with Ian 'Dano' Rogerson.

Most recently, he was a presenter on Studio 10.

In the four decades in between, Coleman's voice could be heard on the BBC's airwaves, as a narrator of a children's TV show, in several musical comedy singles, and on stage in musical theatre productions.

He also appeared in a number of TV and film productions, including Young Einstein, Saturday Morning Live, and as a correspondent in London for Sunrise.

The trophy cabinet was as full as his resume, with Coleman picking up three Gold Sony Radio Academy Awards, an NTL award for broadcaster of the year in the UK, and a New York Radio award for Best International Radio Show.

He was also awarded a medal of the Order of Australia in 2015 for his service to broadcast media and the community, including his work with Radio for the Print Handicapped, the School for the Deaf and Blind, the Schizophrenia Research Institute, Carers' Australia and most recently the Movember Foundation.

Wife Margot said in a statement that Coleman wanted to be remembered "for doing a good deed every day".

"I have been lucky enough to watch up-close someone with enormous talent and the special gift to make people laugh," she said.

"I will miss him beyond words."'

Tributes flowed on social media.

"You'd be hard pressed to find a lovelier guy," comedian Joel Creasey tweeted.

Media personality Peter Fitzsimmons lauded Coleman as "the most eternally effervescent man" he'd ever met, while ABC presenter and comedian Mark Humphries described him as "a ball of positive energy and light".

"His enthusiasm was infectious and he was incredibly kind. I absolutely loved the guy," he tweeted.

Coleman died peacefully overnight on Friday with his wife Margot and children Oscar, 27, and Emily, 24, by his side.

© AAP 2021

Saturday was meant to be the day Greater Sydney emerged from a two-week lockdown, but instead the city has recorded another 50 cases and woken to the toughest COVID-19 restrictions in over a year.

The new cases were diagnosed from over 42,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Friday, and include 26 who were active in the community for part of their infectious period.

"When you know that there are 26 cases infectious in the community, the only conclusion we can draw is that things are going to get worse before they get better.

She again appealed for Sydneysiders to stop bending the lockdown rules, citing at least two people who police caught throwing parties overnight.

"The vast majority of those (new) cases - and I can't stress this enough - are close family or friends of people who have COVID," she told reporters.

"If you truly love your parents, your sisters, your best friends, please stick to the rules."

Some 44 cases were recorded the day before, marking the worst day of the current virus outbreak and prompting the premier to warn lockdown will likely be extended again.

The premier said a premature reopening of Greater Sydney would result in thousands of coronavirus cases, hospitalisations and deaths.

Tough new rules, limiting exercise to groups of two and banning browsing at shops, also came into effect on Friday at 5pm, as the state's health department on Friday issued more alerts for retail stores across Sydney.

Among them are Woolworths stores in Mascot and Ashfield, Aldi stores in Hoxton Park, Quakers Hill and Ashfield, a Beacon Lighting shop in Bankstown, and KFC in Rockdale.

Several places are listed close contact exposure sites for periods of seven hours or longer.

They include an Ikea at Tempe, where a staffer worked whilst infectious, and a construction site at Homebush.

Seven furniture stores along the same road in Campbelltown have also been identified as venues of concern for visitors on Sunday afternoon.

The new restrictions also permit only one person per household to leave the home for shopping each day, and limit funerals to 10 people.

Ten COVID-19 patients in NSW are in intensive care, with four ventilated - one person aged in their 20s.

© AAP 2021