❓ Ms. Davies questions the government's choice to amend the Emergency Management Act instead of the Public Health Act for COVID-19 response and the lack of oversight of the State Emergency Coordinator's decisions. The Deputy Premier defends the decision, citing the need for a whole-of-government approach and preparedness for future pandemics.
AnsweredQoN 559Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
AMENDMENT (TEMPORARY COVID-19 PROVISIONS) BILL 2022
559. Ms M.J. DAVIES to the Deputy Premier:
I refer to the Emergency Management
Amendment (Temporary COVID-19 Provisions) Bill 2022.
(1) Why has the
government chosen to temporarily amend the Emergency Management Act instead of
the Public Health Act to provide fit-for-purpose legislation to respond to the
COVID-19 pandemic and any future pandemics?
(2) Why has the
government chosen to have no ministerial or parliamentary oversight of
decisions of the State Emergency Coordinator as empowered by the proposed bill?
AMENDMENT (TEMPORARY COVID-19 PROVISIONS) BILL 2022
559. Ms M.J. DAVIES to the Deputy Premier:
I refer to the Emergency Management
Amendment (Temporary COVID-19 Provisions) Bill 2022.
(1) Why has the
government chosen to temporarily amend the Emergency Management Act instead of
the Public Health Act to provide fit-for-purpose legislation to respond to the
COVID-19 pandemic and any future pandemics?
(2) Why has the
government chosen to have no ministerial or parliamentary oversight of
decisions of the State Emergency Coordinator as empowered by the proposed bill?
AnswerView source ↗
I
thank the member for the question. For the sake of the record, I am, of course,
answering the question as the Premier's representative because
he is travelling to Canberra to attend the national service of mourning for Her
Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. I also add, I am not the Acting Premier, but am
very happy to receive the question from the Leader of the Opposition.
(1)–(2) The
purpose of the legislation brings into stark reality that the COVID-19 pandemic
is not over. We are still facing a potential that some of the policies that
were brought into being as a result of our dealing with the emergency that was
the COVID-19 pandemic may need to be implemented in some form at some point in
the future.
The WA government, like governments
across Australia—although perhaps with the exception of Victoria—has
decided to implement legislation that will provide the necessary powers to respond
to any emerging issues in relation to a global pandemic when they arise from
time to time. I think the reality is that as
the world's population continues to grow and as we continue to encroach
upon natural environments , there will come a time when there is another
episode associated with some form of cross-species communicable disease. Therefore, from that perspective, it makes sense
that we have in place the measures that we need to ensure that we can
respond when the time arises.
The opposition, like many other
people in the community, has been calling on us to move beyond the state of
emergency and that is what this legislation will do. It will put in place
appropriate powers for the emergency management controller to respond as the
need arises and take us beyond the Emergency Management Act, which as everyone
knows is not fit for purpose. The Emergency Management Act is primarily a piece
of legislation around things such as floods, cyclones, fires and other
disasters and not for a prolonged campaign that something like a global
pandemic represents. The bill is an appropriate response to the need to move
beyond the Emergency Management Act, but will ensure that we will have the
necessary powers to respond as required.
The member's question also
goes to the point of why are we not just enlivening the Public Health Act or
other aspects, or doing some version of that legislation. As we saw during the
COVID-19 pandemic, a whole-of-government
response, not simply a health response, is required. That goes to the issue,
obviously , of the health factors that are associated with it, but also
to the issue that we must be able if required to manage the population and
population movements to ensure that people are kept safe.
thank the member for the question. For the sake of the record, I am, of course,
answering the question as the Premier's representative because
he is travelling to Canberra to attend the national service of mourning for Her
Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. I also add, I am not the Acting Premier, but am
very happy to receive the question from the Leader of the Opposition.
(1)–(2) The
purpose of the legislation brings into stark reality that the COVID-19 pandemic
is not over. We are still facing a potential that some of the policies that
were brought into being as a result of our dealing with the emergency that was
the COVID-19 pandemic may need to be implemented in some form at some point in
the future.
The WA government, like governments
across Australia—although perhaps with the exception of Victoria—has
decided to implement legislation that will provide the necessary powers to respond
to any emerging issues in relation to a global pandemic when they arise from
time to time. I think the reality is that as
the world's population continues to grow and as we continue to encroach
upon natural environments , there will come a time when there is another
episode associated with some form of cross-species communicable disease. Therefore, from that perspective, it makes sense
that we have in place the measures that we need to ensure that we can
respond when the time arises.
The opposition, like many other
people in the community, has been calling on us to move beyond the state of
emergency and that is what this legislation will do. It will put in place
appropriate powers for the emergency management controller to respond as the
need arises and take us beyond the Emergency Management Act, which as everyone
knows is not fit for purpose. The Emergency Management Act is primarily a piece
of legislation around things such as floods, cyclones, fires and other
disasters and not for a prolonged campaign that something like a global
pandemic represents. The bill is an appropriate response to the need to move
beyond the Emergency Management Act, but will ensure that we will have the
necessary powers to respond as required.
The member's question also
goes to the point of why are we not just enlivening the Public Health Act or
other aspects, or doing some version of that legislation. As we saw during the
COVID-19 pandemic, a whole-of-government
response, not simply a health response, is required. That goes to the issue,
obviously , of the health factors that are associated with it, but also
to the issue that we must be able if required to manage the population and
population movements to ensure that people are kept safe.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.