The "challenging question" of when unvaccinated people can take part in society is undecided by the NSW government, but the state's treasurer says "open up" once everyone has been offered two jabs.
Treasurer Dominic Perrottet has said he does not want a "two-tiered society" in NSW.
"Once every single person in this state has had the opportunity be vaccinated with two doses then we should open up for everyone," Mr Perrottet told Sydney radio 2GB on Friday afternoon.
Opposition Leader Chris Minns suggested the comment could undermine public health messaging.
"It's really important the NSW government is singing from the same song sheet and continues to encourage people to get vaccinated," Mr Minns said.
The freedoms to be reinstated once the state reaches the 70 per cent target next month are limited to those who are fully vaccinated.
Those who have not received two jabs will not be able to attend restaurants, shops, pubs and other places that are set to reopen.
The NSW premier has discouraged people from thinking of the state's reopening next month as "Freedom Day".
NSW was "almost gallop(ing) to the finish line" of 70 per cent full vaccination among its eligible population, which would trigger the reopening, Gladys Berejiklian said on Friday.
But the government and its citizens must still behave responsibly, she said.
"I'm always wary of using terms like Freedom Day because when we start to open up it must be step-by-step, it has to be done cautiously," Ms Berejiklian told reporters.
The state reported 1043 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm on Thursday, 20 fewer than the day before.
Eleven people died, of whom 10 were unvaccinated.
Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant told reporters "we will not (ever) go back to pre-COVID".
"We'll always have to be mindful that COVID exists ... It's not going to be back to normal," she said.
NSW residents would have to keep getting booster shots and listening to health advice when there were outbreaks, even when vaccination rates were higher, she said.
At least 84 per cent of NSW residents have had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, and more than 57 per cent are fully vaccinated.
One-third of NSW children aged between 12 and 15 have already been vaccinated despite being eligible for the jab for less than a fortnight.
There are 1186 COVID-19 patients in hospital in NSW, with 232 in intensive care beds and 110 on ventilators.
Meanwhile, alcohol is now allowed temporarily at some Sydney public parks to "reward and thank" vaccinated picnickers.
Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Rob Stokes said rules restricting alcohol at sites managed by Placemaking NSW will be put on hold until October 31.
"After an incredibly tough winter, people who have followed COVID rules and received both jabs deserve to enjoy a beer or wine responsibly," Mr Stokes said in a statement on Friday afternoon.
© AAP 2021
Image: U.S. Secretary of Defense, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons