The NSW Liberal-Nationals government’s attempt to block transparency around its health advice with the COVID-19 outbreak in Sydney last June will now become public, thanks to a motion headed by Labor, and supported by the Greens and the cross bench.
NSW Labor in the upper house (Legislative Council) were successful on October 13 with their motion.
Normal procedure for bills which are passed in one parliamentary house is that they are debated and voted on in the other house to become law, yet the office of Greens MLC, David Shoebridge, told The Echo the successful upper house (Legislative Council) motion does not require a vote from the lower house of parliament (the Legislative Assembly).
The motion by NSW upper house Labor MLC, John Graham, notes that the NSW government only supplied part of the documents requested by the Public Accountability Committee around health advice provided by the NSW Chief Health Officer, Dr Kerry Chant and the Ministry of Health, ‘advising on potential or additional restrictions and lockdowns and the timing of potential or additional restrictions, and lockdowns for Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour’.
Dr Chant and Health Minister, Brad Hazzard refused to supply the material, according to the motion, because, ‘such advice was prepared for Crisis Cabinet, a subcommittee of Cabinet’.
Additionally, the motion says the Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC) also rejected transparency ‘on the basis that they were related to the “Crisis Policy Committee of Cabinet” and therefore protected by Cabinet confidentiality’.
The motion also ‘re-asserts the importance of parliamentary scrutiny during the COVID-19 pandemic, where residents are subject to increased restrictions by government that impact their lives and livelihoods’.
Legal advice from Michael Sexton SC, was also tabled, which said that ‘it is more likely than not that a court would uphold the power of a committee of the NSW Parliament to call for [such] evidence’.
Labor’s John Graham told parliament, ‘We want everyone in this fight and we believe this is a better way to do it: transparency and trust’.
‘The Government says it is Cabinet in confidence. It says it will not release it – not even behind closed doors, not even under privilege, not even in the way that is customary. We say we support the health advice, but we would like to see it’.
Local MPs voted against motion
Local MLC, Ben Franklin, and Liberal MLC, Catherine Cusack, both voted against the motion.
Mr Franklin told parliament that the Crisis Policy Committee of Cabinet was a subcommittee of Cabinet.
‘It had no statutory or regulatory basis for existence. It was created by a Premier, and it could be abolished or amended by any Premier, as we have recently seen. Its roles and functions are referred to in the State Emergency Management Plans, but it was a subcommittee of Cabinet.
Mr Franklin said ‘The status of the Crisis Policy Committee as a committee of Cabinet was recognised by the Supreme Court as recently as last month.
‘The recent Supreme Court case of Henry & Ors v Hazzard (No 2) [2021] NSWSC 1235 considered whether a submission to the Crisis Policy Committee and a decision of that committee was subject to public interest immunity’.
Mr Shoebridge’s office said they expect the materials to be available by early November.
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