Scott Morrison has sent an essential message — the Daniel Andrews recovery plan is untenable in its health, economic and human dimensions.
The split in Australia’s fight against COVID-19 has deepened dramatically with the flawed health response, astonishing arrogance and lack of economic concern displayed by the Andrews government.
Morrison made clear the Andrews plan must be revised. He called it a “worse-case scenario” and said it must be seen only as a starting point with Victoria needing to move “more quickly” in managing its recovery. The desperation in the business community is without precedent.
Morrison’s remarks reflected the federal government’s alarm at Victoria’s determination to sacrifice jobs and business but — because he cannot overrule Andrews — he appealed for the Premier to follow the NSW model. He called out the underlying flaw in the Victorian plan — if you don’t possess an integrated testing and tracing capability in your health system able to contain the virus then you resort to punitive enforcement against individuals and the economy. This is the Victorian plight.
“Lockdowns and borders are not signs of success in dealing with COVID-19,” Morrison said in a warning to premiers who enshrine the manic closed borders mentality.
At the heart of the Victorian malaise is a crisis of governance. It refused to consult with the Morrison government; it offered token, uninterested dialogue with business; it has not released the modelling it used to justify its plan; and it treats the greatest crisis Victoria has faced for decades as something to be sorted by Labor trusted loyalists.
“What I’m seeing in front of me is a plan which says that Sydney would be in curfew now if it was going on the same plan as Victoria,” Morrison said. “We want to provide support — as we already have — to the Victorian government.”
The PM said NSW was the gold standard. The aim was to get Victoria to the NSW capability “to ensure that Australia can be open”. He nailed the issue: “NSW is happy to drop borders because they’re confident in their ability to contain the virus.”
Morrison said the Andrews plan was “crushing news” for Victoria. Mental health issues would be “sorely tested”. People would live under deep restrictions for months. Morrison signalled his government will get involved — he wants to see and “interrogate” the health modelling and scientific basis for what Andrews has done. So do business and other epidemiologists. For Andrews, the days of deception and unaccountability are running out.
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