Daniel Andrews survives no-confidence vote in parliament Tuesday
Premier Daniel Andrews has survived a no-confidence vote in parliament over his handling of the coronavirus pandemic and the botched hotel quarantine program.
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A bid to oust Daniel Andrews as premier has been comprehensively rejected by Victorian MPs.
A motion of no-confidence in the Premier was on Tuesday evening defended 44 to 23.
The motion was moved by opposition leader Michael O’Brien.
But it was never expected to succeed, with Labor holding an 11 seat majority in the legislative assembly.
Mr Andrews had dismissed the motion as “cheap politics”.
The motion endured hours of debate with government MPs including deputy premier James Merlino and treasurer Tim Pallas passionately defending the Premier’s handling of the coronavirus crisis.
It comes as pressure mounts on the government following the sudden resignation of top public servant Chris Eccles over evidence to the hotel quarantine inquiry.
With Labor holding an 11-seat majority the motion, dubbed by the Premier as “cheap politics”, is expected to be knocked back.
“(Michael O’Brien) is not relevant to the work I’m doing, nor are his urgings … he and the cheap politics he trades in is of no consequence when it comes to fighting this virus. His cheap politics are not a vaccine against this virus,” Mr Andrews said.
Mr O’Brien said the motion was a chance for every MP in the lower house to decide whether Mr Andrews deserved to continue in office.
“More than 75,000 Victorians have called out the lies, mistakes and cover ups that have left us with no confidence in Daniel Andrews and his Labor Government,” he said.
“Every single Labor MP will have an opportunity this week to show who they stand with – Daniel Andrews or the Victorian people they were elected to represent.
“While other states have managed to get the virus under control and to reopen their business, life is still far from normal for millions of Victorians.”
It is the one shot the opposition will have to move such a motion before the 2022 state election, with a limit of one no-confidence motion each parliamentary term.
The opposition failed in a no-confidence motion against the government ahead in the months leading up to the 2018 election.
The motion was moved by then opposition leader Matthew Guy over the misuse of taxpayer money in Labor’s rorts-for-votes scandal.
It was ultimately lost in a 49 to 33 vote.
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