❓ Opposition questions the Health Minister about a quarantine breach and calls for an independent review of border protocols. The Minister deflects, highlighting government investment in Peel Health Campus and criticising the opposition's stance on border closures.
AnsweredQoN 548Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
CORONAVIRUS —
QUARANTINE BREACHES
548. Mr Z.R.F. KIRKUP to the Minister for Health:
Notably absent from that answer was
Peel Health Campus.
I refer to yet another breach of the
hard border, as reported by WAtoday, by a 28-year-old Ascot woman. Does the
minister now agree with the opposition that an independent risk assessment and
COVID-19 outbreak preparedness review is needed to identify and address the
shortfalls in our border and quarantine protocols such as this breach?
QUARANTINE BREACHES
548. Mr Z.R.F. KIRKUP to the Minister for Health:
Notably absent from that answer was
Peel Health Campus.
I refer to yet another breach of the
hard border, as reported by WAtoday, by a 28-year-old Ascot woman. Does the
minister now agree with the opposition that an independent risk assessment and
COVID-19 outbreak preparedness review is needed to identify and address the
shortfalls in our border and quarantine protocols such as this breach?
AnswerView source ↗
I apologise to the house for not
mentioning Peel Health Campus. I thank the member for Dawesville because he is
very much aware, but no more aware than the member for Mandurah, that the only
government since the Carpenter Labor government to invest significantly in the
expansion of Peel Health Campus has been the McGowan Labor government. For
eight and a half years it was neglected.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Order, member
for Dawesville! You are the one who brought this on.
Mr R.H. COOK : Member for
Dawesville, we have not even touched the commonwealth government funding yet.
At the moment, that hospital's emergency department is being expanded.
There is an expansion of the hospital parking as well as the waiting area for
emergency department patients thanks to the McGowan Labor government's
investment. We look forward to working with our partners, the commonwealth
government —
Mr W.J. Johnston : And the
next member for Dawesville!
Mr R.H. COOK : And the next
member for Dawesville! We will ensure that there is ongoing redevelopment of
the Peel Health Campus. It is a great investment by the McGowan Labor
government.
I thank the member for Dawesville
for raising the issue of the great work by the Western Australia Police Force,
under the guidance of the Minister for Police, in tracking down the latest Western
Australian who thought that they could outsmart our hard border policy.
Mr Z.R.F. Kirkup : They got
through all the way to Scarborough!
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Excuse me!
Member for Armadale, you are not even in the chamber, but I am still going to
call you. Member for Dawesville, you are in the chamber, and I am calling you.
I know that you like the limelight, but two questions in a row and you are
going feral!
Mr R.H. COOK : We are very
proud of our hard border policy. It is interesting that the member for
Dawesville would wish to critique our hard border policy because if we had had
a Liberal government during the COVID-19 pandemic—perish the thought—we
would not have to worry about our border mechanisms, because it would have
dismantled them. The Leader of the Opposition, in May and in June and
throughout her commentary on our hard border policy, called for the McGowan
government to tear the hard border down. On 18 May, she made her famous remarks to Jacob Kagi from ABC news. He asked if
she would dismantle the hard borders and she said, yes, she would.
Mrs L.M. Harvey : Tell the
truth!
Mr
R.H. COOK : Is the Leader of the
Opposition saying that she did not say on 18 May that she would bring down the hard border? I believe Mr Kagi asked, ''If you were Premier, would
you reopen the interstate border now?''
Point of Order
Mr Z.R.F. KIRKUP : Point of
order!
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members! I will
hear this interesting point in silence, please.
Mr Z.R.F. KIRKUP : Mr
Speaker, the question was in relation to the government's position on
the independent expert review that the opposition has called for. I ask the
minister to get back to answering that question.
The SPEAKER : It is a good
point, member, but it was about the hard border, so I will not allow it.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Mr R.H. COOK : Indeed, it
was about the hard border, which the Leader of the Opposition said she would
pull down.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr R.H. COOK : On 18 May, in
answer to the question, ''If you were Premier, would you reopen the
interstate border now?'', the Leader of the Opposition said, ''I
would.'' I am not sure why the member for Dawesville is so worried about
our hard border, because if members opposite were sitting on these benches,
they would have dismantled them by now.
Let us go to the hard borders. How
is it that we were able to detect this person who smuggled themselves across
the border? It is because of the excellent system—the G2G PASS app—which
tracked this person throughout their travels. It was because we knew this
person should have been in the state and had not reported via the G2G PASS app
that they were in the state that we were able to undertake an investigation,
ensure that we intercepted that person, ensure that we arrested that person,
and ensure that that person will pay for trying to transgress our hard borders.
This is down to the great work of the WA police and the cutting-edge technology
we have to make sure that we can track, trace and ensure that our hard border
is in place. This is an example of the success story of our hard border. We do
not want to take our frontline troops, who are defending our hard border, off
the front line to undertake a spurious inquiry that the member for Dawesville
would have us venture forth on. Our hard border is working. It is keeping Western
Australians safe and in the workplace.
mentioning Peel Health Campus. I thank the member for Dawesville because he is
very much aware, but no more aware than the member for Mandurah, that the only
government since the Carpenter Labor government to invest significantly in the
expansion of Peel Health Campus has been the McGowan Labor government. For
eight and a half years it was neglected.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Order, member
for Dawesville! You are the one who brought this on.
Mr R.H. COOK : Member for
Dawesville, we have not even touched the commonwealth government funding yet.
At the moment, that hospital's emergency department is being expanded.
There is an expansion of the hospital parking as well as the waiting area for
emergency department patients thanks to the McGowan Labor government's
investment. We look forward to working with our partners, the commonwealth
government —
Mr W.J. Johnston : And the
next member for Dawesville!
Mr R.H. COOK : And the next
member for Dawesville! We will ensure that there is ongoing redevelopment of
the Peel Health Campus. It is a great investment by the McGowan Labor
government.
I thank the member for Dawesville
for raising the issue of the great work by the Western Australia Police Force,
under the guidance of the Minister for Police, in tracking down the latest Western
Australian who thought that they could outsmart our hard border policy.
Mr Z.R.F. Kirkup : They got
through all the way to Scarborough!
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Excuse me!
Member for Armadale, you are not even in the chamber, but I am still going to
call you. Member for Dawesville, you are in the chamber, and I am calling you.
I know that you like the limelight, but two questions in a row and you are
going feral!
Mr R.H. COOK : We are very
proud of our hard border policy. It is interesting that the member for
Dawesville would wish to critique our hard border policy because if we had had
a Liberal government during the COVID-19 pandemic—perish the thought—we
would not have to worry about our border mechanisms, because it would have
dismantled them. The Leader of the Opposition, in May and in June and
throughout her commentary on our hard border policy, called for the McGowan
government to tear the hard border down. On 18 May, she made her famous remarks to Jacob Kagi from ABC news. He asked if
she would dismantle the hard borders and she said, yes, she would.
Mrs L.M. Harvey : Tell the
truth!
Mr
R.H. COOK : Is the Leader of the
Opposition saying that she did not say on 18 May that she would bring down the hard border? I believe Mr Kagi asked, ''If you were Premier, would
you reopen the interstate border now?''
Point of Order
Mr Z.R.F. KIRKUP : Point of
order!
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members! I will
hear this interesting point in silence, please.
Mr Z.R.F. KIRKUP : Mr
Speaker, the question was in relation to the government's position on
the independent expert review that the opposition has called for. I ask the
minister to get back to answering that question.
The SPEAKER : It is a good
point, member, but it was about the hard border, so I will not allow it.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Mr R.H. COOK : Indeed, it
was about the hard border, which the Leader of the Opposition said she would
pull down.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr R.H. COOK : On 18 May, in
answer to the question, ''If you were Premier, would you reopen the
interstate border now?'', the Leader of the Opposition said, ''I
would.'' I am not sure why the member for Dawesville is so worried about
our hard border, because if members opposite were sitting on these benches,
they would have dismantled them by now.
Let us go to the hard borders. How
is it that we were able to detect this person who smuggled themselves across
the border? It is because of the excellent system—the G2G PASS app—which
tracked this person throughout their travels. It was because we knew this
person should have been in the state and had not reported via the G2G PASS app
that they were in the state that we were able to undertake an investigation,
ensure that we intercepted that person, ensure that we arrested that person,
and ensure that that person will pay for trying to transgress our hard borders.
This is down to the great work of the WA police and the cutting-edge technology
we have to make sure that we can track, trace and ensure that our hard border
is in place. This is an example of the success story of our hard border. We do
not want to take our frontline troops, who are defending our hard border, off
the front line to undertake a spurious inquiry that the member for Dawesville
would have us venture forth on. Our hard border is working. It is keeping Western
Australians safe and in the workplace.
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