Meanwhile, Victoria has gone four consecutive days without recording a new COVID case. The state’s active caseload has dropped to 10.Draft government amendments were on Tuesday circulated to MPs outlining changes following negotiations with Greens and key cross benchers.They include future fines for young people being drastically reduced, and the introduction of an appeals process for people subject to detention orders.The legislation to extend the Public Health and Wellbeing Amendment (State of Emergency Extension) Bill is set to be debated in the upper house later today.If passed, the state of emergency would be extended until December. It has already passed the lower house.Leader of the Opposition in the upper house, David Davis, said the amendments did nothing to limit the unprecedented powers of the government.“Fundamentally they leave intact the extraordinary powers of Daniel Andrews and his government,” he said.“If this is the agreement of the minor parties, it’s a sellout,” he said.Mr Davis said while the opposition supported the introductions of a detention order appeals process, it opposed the nine-month state of emergency extension.Instead it wants the extension to be subject to a monthly review, with any extensions by agreement of both houses of parliament.Victoria has been in a continuous state of emergency since March 16 last year, but under current legislation cannot exceed March 16.It gives Victoria’s chief health officer extraordinary powers to do whatever is necessary to contain the spread of COVID-19 and reduce the risk to the health of Victorians.The government was forced to rush through legislation last year increasing the maximum total period for a State of Emergency from six months to 12 months.The government faced intense backlash over its original proposal, which would have given Premier Daniel Andrew and chief health officer Brett Sutton the ongoing power to impose restrictions, including to wear masks or to stay at home, without parliament’s approval until September 2021.Meanwhile, an urgent coronavirus alert has been issued for three new suburbs in Melbourne’s west after fragments were found at the Werribee wastewater treatment plant.Residents and recent visitors to Tarneit, Werribee and Hoppers Crossing have been urged to get tested even if mild COVID-19 symptoms develop after viral fragments were detected on February 25.It comes as Victoria has used just a third of its available COVID-19 vaccines in the first week of the rollout.National COVID-19 Coordination Commissioner Jane Halton told 3AW this morning that “everyone’s learning”.“I do think slow and steady at the beginning is wise,” Ms Halton said. “Everyone’s learning how to do this. We’ve never done this before.”“I’m not at all worried by the numbers at this early stage.”However, she said the National COVID-19 Coordination Commission was looking to see the number of vaccinations “ramp up” this week and into the following week. Ms Halton said every state will set their own target.“But obviously we’d like them to be using pretty much all of the vaccine that they have available to them.”
Powered by WPeMatico
