More than two million people in Brisbane were ordered into a three-day lockdown after a cluster of coronavirus cases was detected in Australia's third-biggest city.

It is the second snap lockdown of Brisbane and the city's surrounds this year, coming after seven people tested positive for Covid-19 — the first significant community outbreak in Australia in weeks, according to AFP.

“This is the UK strain. It is highly infectious. Now we need to do this now to avoid a longer lockdown,” Queensland state Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.

Schools, restaurants and bars will close from 5:00pm on Monday but people will still be allowed to leave home for essential work, to buy food, exercise and for medical care.