Public won’t cop heavy-handed Covid-style response again, report finds
An inquiry into Australia’s Covid response has singled out Victoria for scathing criticism, highlighting former Premier Daniel Andrews’ harsh mandates.
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An inquiry into the nation’s Covid response has singled out Victoria for scathing criticism, highlighting how former Premier Daniel Andrews’ harsh mandates were driven by a lack of confidence in the health system’s capacity to deal with the crisis.
The 868-page commonwealth report handed down on Tuesday included evidence that Victoria’s approach to restrictions was haphazard, poorly explained and without adequate consideration of mental health – particularly among young people and children.
Most damning for Mr Andrews, the inquiry noted leaders “did not clearly explain” the evidence that supported measures such as prolonged isolation or lockdowns as the pandemic response progressed and vaccinations became available, “particularly when in place for extended periods of time, such as in Melbourne”.
“Some outdoor ball games were permitted in Victoria during the second lockdown, while others were not, with no clear logic behind these decisions,” the report said.
It also noted Victorian data that showed children aged eight to 11 required under state orders to wear masks had higher infection rates than kids aged five to seven, who were not. School sources have claimed children often swapped masks, which was more dangerous than not having them at all.
“Risk factors for child abuse and neglect increased” during the pandemic, the report said, noting Safer Care Victoria found that between September 2020 and January 2022 five Victorian children aged four and under died from complications associated with malnutrition and neglect.
“This was a concerning increase from the two neglect-associated deaths recorded between 2000 and 2019,” the report said.
And Victorian businesses were “twice as likely to face a greater than 80 per cent decline in revenue compared with businesses in NSW and other states”, it said. The report – written by chair and former director general of the NSW Health Department Robyn Kruk, epidemiologist Professor Catherine Bennett, and health economist Angela Jackson – found trust in political leaders and health officials had eroded during the pandemic, leaving the nation ill-prepared for the next crisis.
“We heard that lockdowns have lost credibility with the Australian public,” the report noted. “This is particularly the case in Victoria.”
Stakeholders told the inquiry panel “the level of resilience of a jurisdiction’s health system had a bearing on state leaders’ decision-making on lockdown measures”.
“Where a state leader was nervous about the capacity of their public health system to manage Covid-19, lockdowns and hard border closures were more likely to be implemented,” the report said.
The inquiry heard the Victorian government did not take into account mental health or economic considerations when making pandemic orders for more than a year at the start of the pandemic.
“We heard that before changes were made to public health legislation in 2021, the Victorian government was unable to take into account other matters, such as mental health or economic considerations, when making a pandemic order,” the report noted.
The authors said children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing were “significantly impacted”, due to the disruption to daily routines, increased isolation, stress, anxiety and engagement with social media “triggering weight and body-checking behaviours”.
“Research also suggests that lifestyle disruptions during lockdowns caused changes in brain biology in children and young people,” the report said.
One chapter quoted a young person who gave evidence to the Victorian Commission for Children and Young People Covid-19 snapshot as saying: “Covid has destroyed my routine and I was depressed. I hate Covid, I hate what it has taken from me.“
Ange Shearman, whose son Louie, 16, took his own life in April 2020, claimed Mr Andrews had prioritised his career over the needs of the people he represented.
“The mental health ramifications for us personally, are existential … he’s affected everyone’s mental health, kids’ mental health, and their development,” she said.
Sebastian Agnello, whose mother Carmela died in the July 2020 Epping Gardens care home Covid outbreak, said: “Myself and many other people are suffering with what happened with the lockdown and the Covid spread, and no one’s taken responsibility.”
The inquiry panel backed the creation of an Australian Centre for Disease Control to become “a national repository of communicable disease data, evidence and advice”.
Health Minister Mark Butler said while the report was focused on future lessons rather than raking over individual past decisions, it “doesn’t pull its punches”.
Mr Butler said Australia right now was arguably “worse placed” to respond to another pandemic than in 2020, with reasons including a loss of health workforce and experienced bureaucrats due to “exhaustion” and the large decline in public trust.
The inquiry panel backed the creation of an Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC) to become a “trusted and authoritative on risk assessment and communication, and a national repository of communicable disease data, evidence and advice”.
Mr Butler announced on Tuesday the federal government would commit $251.7m to deliver a Canberra-based CDC, which was expected to be launched on January 1, 2026.
Former treasurer Josh Frydenberg defended the then-Coalition government’s response to what was the “biggest economic shock since the Great Depression”.
“Australia’s Covid response was world leading,” he said.
“The number of jobs saved was higher and the rebound was much faster than in other comparable economies.”
Mr Frydenberg noted the inquiry report stated that even in “great uncertainty” the government “delivered an unprecedented amount of economic support very rapidly and in proportion to the size of the downturn”.
“The response had a strong focus on minimising harm by minimising financial stress, poverty and labour force ‘scarring’,” Mr Frydenberg said.
He accused Labor of trying to “rewrite history” having previously advocated for more spending.
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