Brett Sutton says he did not recommend curfew

Опубликованно 10.09.2020 02:12

Chief health officer Brett Sutton dramatically threw Mr Andrews under the bus yesterday, making the explosive claim in an interview with 3AW’s Neil Mitchell.

Mitchell teed up Professor Sutton by asking if the Victorian Government had ever “introduced something without your advice, or against your advice”.

“No not against my advice, you know, the curfew came in as part of the state of disaster, for example, it wasn’t a state of emergency requirement,” Prof Sutton replied.

“So you know, that was something that was introduced, but it wasn’t something I was against from a public health perspective.”

At his daily press conference on Tuesday, Mr Andrews admitted that the curfew makes “the job of the Victoria Police much easier”.

He was grilled again on Wednesday, asked whose idea the curfew was.

“I can’t pinpoint the individual and the day, I can’t give you a specific person,” he said, again noting “it makes the job of police much easier”.

He added, “If you want to go out and be unlawful now police have got the easiest set of arrangements they have ever had to catch you and fine you. That’s what a curfew delivers.”

Pressed further, Mr Andrews eventually said it was his decision.

“It’s consistent with the health advice,” he said.

“These are decisions ultimately made by me, so the answer to the question (of why there is a curfew) is, I’ve made that decision. It’s a challenging one to make, but it’s effective.”

Hundreds of Victorians have been fined for curfew breaches since last month.

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Victorian CHO Brett Sutton says the curfew was not part of his medical advice. Picture: Daniel Pockett/NCA Newswire

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Victoria’s state of emergency was declared on March 16 under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act of 2008, with Prof Sutton, in his role as the top health official, effectively calling the shots.

As the deadly second wave of COVID-19 began to spread, a more wide-ranging state of disaster was declared at the start of August under the Emergency Management Act of 1986, handing the reins to Police Minister Lisa Neville.

In the interview on Tuesday, Mitchell asked whether Prof Sutton was consulted on the 8pm curfew.

“Yeah, I was consulted on it but it was a separate decision-making pathway,” he said.

Mitchell pressed, “Would you have introduced it?”

“In public health directions? I’m not sure,” Prof Sutton said. “I haven’t reflected on it. I think it has been useful. So, you know, if I put my mind to it, probably.”

Asked whether the Government had acted without his advice on anything else, Prof Sutton said no.

“So this suggestion of tensions between you and the Premier, is that incorrect?” Mitchell asked.

Prof Sutton said, “Mm-hmm. It is incorrect.”

Confused by the @DanielAndrewsMP presser on Victoria’s curfew. He says he is led by health advice. But Chief Health Officer said curfew wasn’t his idea. So who’s was it? Andrews was asked and wouldn’t explicitly say.

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