Waleed Aly has questioned whether Gladys Berejiklian should plunge Sydney into a harder lockdown.
The Project panellists on Wednesday night discussed the NSW premier's decision to extend restrictions in the city until July 16 as it battles a nightmare outbreak of the Indian Delta Covid strain.
Meanwhile, Strategic Health Consultant Bill Bowtell joined the debate to blast NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard's suggestion Australia may need to learn to live with the virus, rather than pursuing a zero cases strategy.
The discussion came after Sydney recorded 27 new cases of the highly infectious Delta variant in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday, of which 14 were out in the community while infectious.