Greater transparency and accountability around pandemic decision-making are to be introduced as part of legislative reforms to empower the Premier to declare a pandemic.
Introducing the legislation, Premier Daniel Andrews (pictured) said the new pandemic-specific part of the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 would also empower the Minister for Health to issue pandemic orders after seeking advice from the Chief Health Officer (CHO) and after a pandemic was declared.
“After considering the advice of the Minister for Health and the CHO that there is a serious risk to public health arising from a current pandemic or a disease of pandemic potential, the Premier will be able to declare a pandemic,” Mr Andrews said.
“A declaration can initially be made for only four weeks but can be renewed for three-month periods until the pandemic no longer presents a serious risk to the community,” he said.
“This framework will replace the current system where State of Emergency powers must be renewed every four weeks up to a maximum of only six to nine months.”
Mr Andrews said the Minister for Health pandemic orders would replace the current CHO public health directions and could include orders to restrict or limit movement, detain or quarantine infectious people or groups of people, as well as regulate activities.
He said authorised officers would have an enshrined role under the legislation with specific powers related to core compliance and enforcement, “enabling them to require information or documents, inspect premises and enforce quarantine”.
The Premier said the new framework ensured that WorkSafe employees, Victoria Police officers, health service employees, local Government and other appropriately qualified individuals could be made authorised officers.
He said changes to the Act would also make it an offence to use information obtained through contact tracing for non-public health purposes.
“These protections go further than any Australian jurisdiction.
“Law enforcement bodies will not be able to access information given to contact tracers and information voluntarily supplied through QR codes, manual check-ins, interview information and other forms of data will be protected.”
Mr Andrews said an aggravated offence would also be created for people and businesses who intentionally or recklessly breached a pandemic order or directions.
