Beverly McArthur, MP Western Victoria Region, Media Release, 23 August 2021

Saturday’s mayhem on the streets of our regional towns and cities was completely avoidable.

It was brought about by the 11 am announcement of a lockdown starting at 1pm that day.

Member for Western Victoria, Bev McArthur, said the Victorian Government clearly neither cares about, nor comprehends, the damage it is doing.

“If anyone could imagine what hitting a panic button looked like, then Saturday was it.

“The streets of Ballarat, for example, were gridlocked. People ran red lights, cars clogged roundabouts and joined queues that snaked forever,” Mrs McArthur said.

“Warrnambool, Geelong, Colac and almost every town was thrown into madness.

“And all of it avoidable.

“Put quite simply, there is little or no coronavirus in our part of Victoria, and even if there was, there are systems in place to deal with it. And if the systems are not working, heads should roll. 

“It makes a farce of QR codes and quarantine processes.  Either they are there for a reason, or they’re not.

“Children’s birthday parties were cancelled – sports finals stopped – playgrounds taped off – children in tears because they were denied the things they have looked forward to for so long. 

Saturday’s snap lockdown left restaurants and cafes with wasted food. Hurt by previous losses, coy businesses have been offering reduced menus, limiting their losses should such a lockdown happen again.

Function centres, including wedding events, were also hit by the snap decision.

“Brides were effectively left stranded at the altar.  And when some needed church services more than ever, they were padlocked as well. 

“Such belligerent lockdowns sap confidence and leave a constant cloud of doubt. Melancholy becomes depression and the lifeline call centres are overwhelmed. Some can cope no longer.”

The Government has announced more support for businesses such as $10,000 payments. Even this grates as many businesses have been denied access or are still waiting for previous lockdown ‘largesse’ handouts. 

“But let’s not be fooled.  Governments are just handing out our money. The debt burden is spiralling.

“This is not feel-good politics.  It’s push-the-pain-down-the-road politics – and it’s going to hurt for generations.

“Businesses don’t want handouts – they simply want to open their doors and make their own money – provide a service and pleasure to customers – and keep their valuable staff in a job.

“Handing out millions of dollars to businesses forced shut in areas where there is little or no virus is financial stupidity.

“It fails the community on all levels.

“The Premier will expect applause for this – as he will when he hands out mental health funding, taken from businesses that have been able to keep workers employed, against the odds, in the form of a payroll tax levy. So, the reward for continuing in business in this crisis? A new tax. 

“The real solution, especially in non, and low-virus areas, costs nothing: let business trade, gyms operate and allow children to go back to school, play sport, dance, sing and play and enjoy all those things that make life wonderful, and families happy. 

“Lockdowns of this Victorian nature are lunacy and disregard the broader needs, and other ailments, that face people every day.”

“Case numbers shouldn’t be the sole determinant of lockdown panic. After seventeen months our health system must surely be able to cope – if not, there is something very wrong with those in charge. Treatment and recovery counts, not positive case numbers alone. 

“In any case, why are we creating a whole new set of rules for one virus?

“We have never locked down for the flu, or gastro outbreaks – and our hospitals have always coped.

“Even the UK’s health system survived with much greater numbers. Its temporary, or Nightingale Hospitals, weren’t used and have since been dismantled. Our multi-million dollar re-fit of part of the Geelong hospital as a purpose built COVID facility, I doubt has received one patient. 

“While the UK has a 77 per cent double vaccination rate – nearly 230,000 tested positive in the past 7 days and 687 Britons have died.

“This might sound dramatic as a standalone statistic, but it fails to distinguish between those dying of, or with, the virus.”

The five-year average death toll for a week in August is more than 10,000.

“The UK embraced Freedom day on 19 July and remains open despite numbers which, in Australia, would result in mantras of fear, mass panic and immediate lockdown and curfew worse than in place for life inmates in Barwon Prison.

“In Victoria today, there are 494 active cases, with 29 people in hospital – 9 of these are in ICU and 5 on ventilators. We must also not forget that, on average, 463 people die from a variety of causes every day in Australia.

“Despite the 820 deaths in 2020, no one has died of COVID-19 in Victoria this year.

“But what of the other catastrophes caused by lockdown and curfew diktats? These numbers will be far more serious than case numbers or even deaths due to COVID-19.

“Clearly, the Premier is wrong to say ‘we cannot live with this virus.’

“We can. And must.”