Victoria recorded another 14 deaths on Friday and 372 more cases.

Twelve of the deaths are related to aged care, while the man in his 20s is the nation's youngest person to die from the virus.

Authorities are also bracing for the findings of a report into the ill-fated disembarkation of the Ruby Princess cruise ship in Sydney, which has spurred another round of political finger pointing.

Victoria's new cases are up from 278 recorded on Thursday, but well down on the 451 cases at the same time last week.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said those figures showed a real cause for hope that Victoria was flattening its rate of infections.

Mr Hunt said the agonising lockdowns in Victoria were beginning to play a role, along with strengthening contact tracing.

The federal government is facing serious questions over its handling of aged care, after a royal commission heard a scathing assessment of the lack of preparation throughout the federally regulated system.

Senior cabinet ministers are reapplying pressure on states to reopen their borders.

Appearing before a Senate inquiry on Friday, Health department secretary Brendan Murphy angrily hit back at suggestions the government was still lacking an adequate plan for outbreaks in the sector.

Meanwhile, Agriculture Minister David Littleproud says state border closures have had serious unintended consequences on agricultural supply chains and the wellbeing of regional Australians.

Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham is urging Australians to travel if they can to help the domestic tourism industry, which has taken a $12 billion hit.

He says travel restrictions should be proportionate to the risks of coronavirus across different states, arguing states with low cases should open to others in a similar situation.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton says Australia's borders will be handled differently after the coronavirus, with authorities to consider whether people are a health risk on top of being a possible criminal or terrorist.

"There is a lot of work to go on between now and when the borders do reopen," he told the Nine Network.

The political blame game has also reignited over the Ruby Princess, which is linked to more than 20 deaths and hundreds of cases.

Mr Dutton insists NSW Health was responsible for passengers getting off the ship, rather than his department.

"There were lessons learnt in relation to the Ruby Princess," he said.

"If there are changes that need to be made in the future well, the NSW government, commonwealth government, whoever it is will make those decisions."

NSW has recorded nine new cases across the state, including a third linked to Liverpool Hospital, and a second linked to Dooleys Lidcombe Catholic Club.

Queensland's two new confirmed cases are a traveller from Sydney and a person on a cargo ship.

Australian Associated Press