Coronavirus: Hotel probe: ‘It might be every corona case’

A judicial probe is examining if every recent virus case in Victoria is linked to the government’s bungled hotel quarantine program.

Melbourne's Rydges on Swanston hotel, left, is one of a number of Melbourne hotels linked to the quarantine bungles, with Premier Daniel Andrews, right, and his government under pressure for how it happened. Pictures:

The judicial inquiry into Victoria’s bungled hotel quarantine system will focus on whether all of almost 3000 known active coronavirus cases in the state are linked to breaches by security guards.

Opening the inquiry led by retired judge Jennifer Coate in Melbourne on Monday, senior counsel assisting Tony Neal QC said he understood the “profound and ongoing significance” of the second wave of COVID-19 infections to Victorians.

The inquiry’s first hearing came as Victoria recorded 275 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the number of active cases to 2913, with 147 people in the state’s hospitals with the virus, 31 of whom were in intensive care.

An aged care resident in her 80s who died in hospital became the 19th person to die from COVID-19 in Victoria since July 5, and the 39th since the pandemic began.

Mr Neal said information already provided to the inquiry suggested a link between returned travellers in hotel quarantine and many if not all of the cases identified in the wider Victorian community in recent weeks.

“Comments made by the Chief Health Officer to the media have suggested that it might even be that every case of COVID-19 in Victoria in recent weeks could be sourced to the hotel quarantine program,” he said.

“Those assisting you are in the process of obtaining the necessary material and documents and witnesses before the board on that very issue.”

The $3 million inquiry was called by the Andrews government after genomic links were identified between outbreaks totalling more than 60 cases in security guards and their close contacts in the Rydges on Swanston and Stamford Plaza hotels, where returned overseas travellers were quarantined.

Mr Neal said the inquiry had “put on notice” decision makers from dozens of government agencies, hotels and private security companies, requesting responses from the probe.

The agencies include the departments of Premier & Cabinet, Health & Human Services, Jobs, Precincts & Regions, Treasury & Finance, Justice & Community Safety, Land Water & Planning, and Transport, as well as Victoria Police and Emergency Management Victoria.

Justice Coate said she expected “no less than full, frank and timely co-operation from all relevant government departments, entities and persons to enable me to do my job.”

Hotels under the inquiry’s microscope include the TravelLodge Hotel Melbourne, the Stamford Plaza Melbourne, Rydges on Swanston, Park Royal Hotel, Holiday Inn Melbourne and Four Points by Sheraton.

The security companies, which The Australian has previously reported were awarded contracts without tender, are Wilson Security and United Risk Management, Unified Security Group and Ultimate Protection Services.

Unusually, Mr Neal is being instructed by lawyers provided by the Victorian Government Solicitors‘ Office, after Justice Coate determined there was no conflict of interest in government lawyers interrogating government officials on government policies.

Describing the coronavirus as a “wicked enemy”, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said on Monday the hotel quarantine breaches were “unacceptable to me and indeed unacceptable to all of us”.

“But the best thing to do is to have that proper understanding of exactly what has gone on,” Mr Andrews said.

“That’s what we‘re entitled to and that is what the judicial process, at arm’s length from government, will appropriately deliver.”

Since announcing the inquiry on June 30, the Premier and his ministers have used it as an excuse not to answer questions from journalists regarding the management of the hotel quarantine system.

Overseas arrivals have since been diverted to other capital cities, with the vast majority of people currently in hotel quarantine in Victoria residents of housing commission towers in Melbourne’s inner northwest who have tested positive to COVID-19.

On Monday, Police Association Secretary Wayne Gatt revealed Victoria Police members had been called in to take a leadership role in the system, which was initially taken over by the Sheriff and prison agency Corrections Victoria with assistance from Alfred Health in late June, following the outbreaks in private security staff.

Opposition police spokesman David Southwick said the call for police assistance raised questions as to whether the problems in the system had been properly addressed.

“The use of Victoria Police represents the third major change in quarantine hotel management over the last three weeks,” Mr Southwick said

“Daniel Andrews’ failure to properly manage these facilities has placed the safety of all Victorians at risk and is resulting in catastrophic consequences.”

Public hearings resume on August 6.