And not a real machine gun I take it.
Andrews was asked at the presser what he thought of the PM’s comments, which a journo part quoted to him.
Dan said he wasn’t going to bag the PM but added that the recent lockdowns were linked to not enough vax
- and that journos should direct Qs about vax supply to the PM
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Some member of the Legislative Council considers that her views on vax mandates represent the views of the whole of Victoria because she was elected.
The same MP who has a pic of Dan on the edge of a cliff on her Facebook, gives a tick to someone who offers to push him over the cliff
- Dr Cath Cummings, one to remember when voting in that region at the next election.
The good doctor has my vote
If you are related to her you could land a well paying job on her staff.
Got elected as a Derren Hinch Justice Party Member for western metro, but soon after, an Independent.
Oh great, now Dave Sharma in Sydney is the voice of authority on matters Victorian
- many people in Victoria are alarmed at this Bill, although of course I denounce violence.
Why does ABC Sydney give him so much airtime?
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Probs got shares in it
I’ve met Cathy Cummings on many occasions and she is very community minded and likes to fight for the best local outcomes. However since going into State politics I believe that she has lost her way and is now just pandering to a very small group of voters in an effort to try and stay “relevant”. To say I’m disappointed in the path she has taken would be an understatement and many in the Footscray / Seddon / Kingsville area are very upset with her. The ground level support she enjoyed at the last election (ie handing out brochures, attending town hall style meetings) has pretty much evaporated. Classic example of rising to her level of incompetence.
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I listened to her interview with Epstein - incoherent and quite rude, it was impossible to identify what she took issue with. Epstein tried to get her on track and to tease out the issues, but she accused him of interrupting her.
A Shhooter and Fishers member of the Legislative Council, who followed her, identified the specific concerns he has with lack of consultations in about one minute and was far more effective
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Behind paywall
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Incognito mode beats The Age’s pathetic paywall
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OPINION
Victoria’s supposedly autocratic pandemic laws would be better than NSW’s
By Josh Pallas
November 19, 2021 — 5.00am
From Sydney, the intensity of the ugly debate about the Victorian pandemic law is troubling. As an arrest was made, extreme elements – making unfounded claims about the rise of an autocratic state – continue to utter threats of violence against politicians.
A great irony is that the proposed laws would be a significant improvement on those in NSW, and a marked improvement on those currently operating in Victoria. Indeed, the debate in Victoria should represent a great opportunity to witness democracy in action. It was a chance to reconsider laws that had not been used on this scale until the COVID pandemic struck. And yet, facing defeat in the Parliament, the Labor government has postponed debate on a bill that would make the law better, not worse, and increase the accountability of ministers rather than deliver them absolute power.
On that point, as things stand in NSW, the state Health Minister has very broad powers. He can make public health orders, without declaring a state of emergency, if he believes on reasonable grounds that there is a risk, or likely risk to public health. As the law stands in Victoria, the Chief Health Office must declare a state of emergency before making any public health order.
Here is the critical improvement in the proposed new law in Victoria. Under the change, it would be up to the Premier to declare a state of emergency and the Health Minister to make public health orders. This would shift the decision-making from an unelected official to elected ministers who are accountable to Parliament and voters. The proposed law also requires the publication of advice underpinning public health orders which would allow greater scrutiny of reasons for individual measures and create an expert oversight committee to advise the minister and Premier when making decisions.
In NSW, at least it is the elected Health Minister who makes the decisions, yet greater checks are required on that power. The proposed Victorian laws clarify that the law would be subject to the state’s human rights charter, so any orders, such as curfews, that deprive people’s liberty would be subject to greater scrutiny than they are under the existing laws.
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The problem here for NSW? The state has no charter of human rights. This is particularly concerning in times of emergency and it can’t be remedied through changes to pandemic laws alone. Highly punitive fines for citizens, curfews and use of questionable policing strategies might all play out differently if the state had enforceable human rights protections.
The absence of human rights protections, however, shouldn’t prevent NSW from ensuring that the exercise of powers to make public health orders requires the minister to consider the effectiveness, necessity and proportionality of those decisions. The orders themselves should also be “disallowable”. That means they could be invalidated by Parliament if they did not stand up to scrutiny.
It’s unsurprising that the NSW government has shelved proposed changes to its pandemic laws until next year. Although approved by cabinet, they received pushback from the Coalition party room. I only hope members of the party room have not been influenced by the misinformation displayed in Victoria.
NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard was seeking to extend temporary police powers to allow them to enforce the Public Health Act until 2023 and to extend some temporary powers of Health Department officials to direct people to undergo medical examination or testing – without review by the Civil and Administrative Tribunal. While these powers might be reasonable, they must still be scrutinised and debated.
Which is the great pity of the breakdown in the debate in Victoria. Of itself, that debate about the way Victorians should be governed through the pandemic is a win for democracy. It wouldn’t happen in autocratic states. It presented an opportunity for parliamentarians, citizens and stakeholders to reconsider very powerful legislation when the issues were fresh in everyone’s mind.
Our freedoms and liberties are not given up during a pandemic when public health orders are made. Rather, they are given up when the laws that permit the orders pass through Parliament. I hope that a lasting positive legacy of the pandemic will be that the role of ministers and unelected officials who make rules that govern our lives attract greater scrutiny.
Josh Pallas is vice-president of the NSW Council for Civil Liberties.
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In regard to those opposing Governments mandating vax for workers and access to premises, which includes the PM
- what is the position of the the Unions, private sector business employers and owners of a business?
- including their peak bodies such as ACTU, the BCA , Victorian Chamber of Industry , Small Business Ombudsman ( headed by Liberal Kate Carnell)
They are the ones with the capacity to influence Governments, but AFAIK, have not been vocal on direct or indirect mandatory vax and have not expressed a strong preference for it to be taken out of the hands of State Governments ( including NSW)
- and which among them have condemned the Melbourne protests?
Up to 1.6 Million People in the U.S. Have Long-Term Smell Loss Due to Covid-19.
So there’s hope then, that in the long term these anti vaxxers protesters will forget they’ve left the gas on.
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Poor NSW, hemmed in by Victoria , Queensland and the ACT, all of which have Charters of Human Rights.
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Then you have the several thousand idiots at the freedom rally in Adelaide today protesting about vaccine mandates with that utter Fark stick Antic in attendance.
Seems he wants to continue his attack on the Marshall government despite the good position we are in
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I can’t fkn stand that bloke.
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He is a utter scumbag. Has continually tried to undermine the state government. Unfortunately it appears his support is growing