Shadow Minister for Health Zak Kirkup is urging the Labor Government to support the Liberal Party’s push for the establishment of an independent expert rapid review committee to safeguard Western Australia against a community outbreak of COVID-19.
Mr Kirkup has written to Health Minister Roger Cook to air his concerns and ask for Labor’s backing of his proposal.
“We have seen interstate how quickly this virus can race through communities and the devastating toll it leaves in its wake,” Mr Kirkup said.
“The public needs reassurance that what is happening in Victoria won’t happen here. They don’t have that at the moment.
“The Labor Government needs to be open and honest. The public has the right to know if the government has the protocols in place to be able to act swiftly when we get a community outbreak of COVID-19 in Western Australia, and the public has the right to know if the government can guarantee that what is happening in Victoria won’t happen here.
“An independent committee would inquire into, assess and report on how our State is prepared in the event of a COVID-19 outbreak.
“More importantly, it should focus on a threat assessment to determine the current risks of the virus entering Western Australia. There have been varied responses from the Liberal New South Wales and Labor Victorian governments which have seen very different health responses to unknown community transmission.
“I think it is imperative that the government agrees to set up this independent committee, which would determine the level of risk posed by our international and interstate borders, and how to best mitigate those outstanding risks.
“We need to assess preparations in Western Australia for our capacity to perform surge testing, rapidly ramp up tracing and implement isolated suburb by suburb, regional or facility-based lockdowns.
“It is also critical given what has happened in Victoria that we can be assured we are properly prepared when it comes to protecting and responding to any outbreak in our aged care facilities.
“And it is important there is an audit of hotel quarantining in Western Australia because of recent breaches and the significant risk posed by people entering our State from interstate and overseas.
“An independent expert rapid review committee inquiry and subsequent public report would provide the people of Western Australia with ongoing confidence that we stand ready to respond as needed in the face of the ever-evolving threat of COVID-19.
“Such an independent expert committee could involve former Ministers for Health such as the Hon Jim McGinty AM and Hon Dr Kim Hames, as well as seeking advice from the likes of the AMA (WA) and other peak bodies.
“I remain hopeful that the government will support my motion and implement this concept in the spirit which we offer it, which is to ultimately help protect the health of all West Australians.
“The government has acted very responsibly recently, adopting two of our ideas which are crucial to protecting the WA community from the spread of COVID-19 – testing visitors from New South Wales for the virus, which wasn’t happening, and getting Federal Government approval for Defence Force personnel to help run hotel quarantining in Western Australia.”