Hotel quarantine criminal charges dropped against Vic health department

Criminal charges against Victoria’s health department over the bungled hotel quarantine program have been dropped with the workplace regulator saying it’s “deeply disappointed” by the decision.

Criminal charges against Victoria’s health department over the disastrous hotel quarantine program have been dropped due to a legal loophole, leaving the workplace safety regulator “deeply disappointed”.

WorkSafe charged the Department of Health with 58 breaches of the Occupational Health and Safety Act in 2021, alleging guests and staff were endangered by its Covid-19 hotel quarantine scheme that led to a deadly second wave and plunged the state into lockdown.

But the Office of Public Prosecutions on Tuesday withdrew the charges, saying its case had been “substantially weakened” after a County Court judge last month excluded 10 witnesses from giving evidence at trial.

The witnesses were employees or agents of the health department and provided statements to the Hotel Quarantine Board of Inquiry — a public hearing — in 2020.

As their statements were provided to the inquiry on the department’s behalf, the judge ruled prosecutors could not use their evidence in criminal proceedings.

The health department was due to stand trial in the County Court over the bungled hotel quarantine program. Picture: Getty Images

The OPP, which took carriage of the prosecution from WorkSafe, did not appeal the April 9 ruling and withdrew the charges on Tuesday.

“The exclusion of that evidence substantially weakened the prosecution case,” an OPP spokesman said.

“As a consequence of the evidentiary ruling, a determination was made that there were not reasonable prospects of conviction in relation to the charges before the Court.”

WorkSafe conducted a 15-month investigation into the debacle. Picture: Wayne Taylor

WorkSafe, which conducted a 15-month investigation that involved the review of tens of thousands of documents, said it was “deeply disappointed” by the decision not to pursue criminal charges, which could have resulted in fines of up to $95m.

“As an independent regulator, WorkSafe strives to enforce the highest standards of health and safety for workers and the community it serves,” a spokesman said.

Victoria’s deadly second Covid-19 wave was sparked after the virus leaked into the community from hotel quarantine breaches, which led to hundreds of deaths and sent parts of the state into a 111-day lockdown.

Tens of thousands of documents over the hotel quarantine program were reviewed before the health department was charged. Picture: Ian Currie

WorkSafe alleged the health department failed to appoint infection control experts or provide proper training to security guards as part of the scheme, which exposed employees to serious illness or death by contracting Covid-19 from returned travellers.

In March last year, a magistrate found there was sufficient evidence to support a conviction and the Department of Health was committed to stand trial in the County Court and the OPP took over the prosecution.

Opposition Leader John Pesutto on Wednesday said the result was “deeply disappointing” for Victorians.

“What Victorians want is somebody fairly and reasonably to be held responsible, somebody has to be held accountable somewhere and it just seems with this government no one is held accountable for anything,” he said.