Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton will no longer have authority to sign public health orders.Credit:Joe Armao
However,Health Minister Martin Foley blasted the duo for “mischief-making”,and said the public health orders would be based on clinical grounds.
He said it would give the government the authority,for example,to lock down a specific suburb,mandate vaccines to access large swaths of public life and impose density quotients or caps on events at which there are large numbers of unvaccinated young children.
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“[Race,religion,sexuality,gender] can’t be considered because the principles of the Public Health and Wellbeing Act don’t allow it to happen – it’s about public health and wellbeing,not your status of race or religion or gender,” Mr Foley said.
“If anyone is suggesting that,they need to go back and do legislation interpretation 101. What it does reflect is some of the conspiratorial nonsense peddled by the opposition as they head increasingly to the margins of civic debate. Their contributions are increasingly hysterical and not informed by evidence.”
Mr Guy labelled the new bill,which is expected to pass the lower house where the government has a majority on Wednesday,as an “incredible attack on democracy”,and called for greater parliamentary oversight.
He accused the Premier of “usurping” the Parliament and cabinet process,and giving himself the authority to “rule by decree for months on end”.
“This bill is the most extreme of its kind we’ve seen in Australia,” Mr Guy said. “While a pandemic requires different approaches,it doesn’t require a law as extreme as this.”
Earlier this month,Mr Guy said public health orders should be “ticked off by a minister or the Premier”,but on Tuesday said the legislation went beyond giving elected officials the power to make decisions.
Victorian Opposition Leader Matthew Guy said the new legislation was draconian.Credit:Joe Armao
“That part of the discussion is but,what,1 per cent of the government’s proposal. No one talked about imposing the ability of the Premier to shut down a protest or individuals on the basis of their characteristics,” Mr Guy said.
“No one ever talked about the Premier having such extensive powers as proposed by this bill ... behind[this bill] the government have thrown a whole lot of other measures,which are completely and utterly draconian.”
The Andrews government needs the votes of three independent MPs in the Legislative Council to pass legislation. It has already secured the votes of Fiona Patten,Andy Meddick and Samantha Ratnam – who they have been consulting with since March – all but guaranteeing the safe passage of the bill.
However,Liberty Victoria president Julia Kretzenbacher said she did not support the bill being rushed through Parliament,and insisted that the new laws must be “carefully” scrutinised by MPs and the public.
“Liberty Victoria is pleased that there will be protection of people’s personal and private data collected for public health reasons. We have always opposed that data being made easily available for policing or other reasons beyond public health,” Ms Kretzenbacher said.
“It is good to see that there will be additional scrutiny of government decisions. Giving decision-making powers to the Premier and Health Minister will increase accountability,because,ultimately,Victorians will be able to express their approval or disapproval of those decisions at the ballot box.”
Justice Party MP Stuart Grimley said apart from Ms Patten,Mr Meddick and Dr Ratnam,none of crossbench parliamentarians had yet seen the legislation.
“Everything we’ve found out is through the media and that’s a disgrace because we all represent people,” Mr Grimley said.
Health Minister Martin Foley refused to shed light on what would be considered an aggravated offence that attracts hefty penalties.Credit:Joe Armao
“I’m really disappointed in this and it’s completely unnecessary. Members of Parliament still haven’t even been given the courtesy of a phone call and that’s really not good enough.”
The debate on the legislation came as Victoria recorded 1510 coronavirus cases,and the deaths of four people on Tuesday. Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said he believed Victoria had passed the present peak,but warned cases would begin rising again as people moved around freely.
“It will go up again. We’re opening up and there will be greater transmission,but that real protection ... is higher and higher vaccination coverage,” Professor Sutton said.
“And that is especially protecting our numbers in ICU,which is pretty stable,and the same for hospitalisations sitting around the 800 mark,it hasn’t moved significantly for a week or two. That’s positive to reflect on.”
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