Big Brother still calling the shots

The transition of long-suffering Melburnians from their fourth lockdown in 14 months to an odd twilight realm in which they must not stray more than 25km from their front doors, including over the Queen’s birthday long weekend, raises questions that demand answers from the Andrews government. Why prolong the agony with the new “post-lockdown restrictions”? Where is the health advice? And why not lift the lockdown a day early after just a single Covid-19 case was reported on Wednesday? It was one of only three cases reported in the past 48 hours, all linked. Moving faster would have allowed children to go back to school on Thursday rather than Friday.

Chief health officer Brett Sutton’s blaming red tape, or “complex legal draftings’’, for the slower-than-needed return to normal does not pass muster. It has been clear for a few days that the state’s situation was improving. “This is a good day,” Acting Premier James Merlino said on Wednesday. So why the go-slow? School authorities should have been ready to re-open on Thursday. The latest restrictions, such as masks remaining compulsory indoors, restaurants and cafes to serve up to 100 people, with a maximum of 50 indoors, outdoor gatherings capped at 10 people and visitors to homes forbidden suggest state authorities have little confidence in their ability to manage even the smallest Covid spike. After last week’s gloomy portents by Dr Sutton about the “beast” that had “moved faster than any other strain we’ve dealt with, and we’re seeing transmission in settings and circumstances we’ve never seen before” that were not borne out by the facts, Victorians can be forgiven for taking authorities’ warnings with a big pinch of salt.

Regional Victorians are faring better. But despite abundant snow and fireplaces ready at inviting country pubs, it will be a lean weekend for many businesses. Outbreak by outbreak, more than any other government, Victorian authorities have become more controlling and restrictive about what Melbourne’s citizens can do and where they can move around, even in their own city and region, on the basis of little publicly available information. Even with the lockdown about to end, they have found a fresh way to retain control. This is yet more bad leadership.