Thursday, 16 September 2021
Constituency questions
Forest Hill electorate
Forest Hill electorate
My constituency question is to the Minister for Health.
Minister, will you rule out the use of so-called ‘vaccination passports’ to determine who can and who cannot attend faith gatherings?
I have been contacted by several faith leaders who are extremely concerned that the Victorian government will introduce restrictions on who is able to attend public faith gatherings. They consider that should such a restriction be proposed, it would be discriminatory and restrict the fundamental freedoms afforded to all Victorians, including faith organisations and their members.
Given that the government has alluded to such restrictions, and indeed some businesses have already proposed such restrictions, faith communities are extremely concerned that the introduction of any such restriction would unreasonably and catastrophically restrict the ability of the faith community to operate.
The government must continue to explore the widespread use of rapid testing technology to provide assurance and protection for people attending events. This is particularly so given the facts that firstly, injected people can still be carriers of COVID-19, and secondly, they can still fall ill from COVID-19.
Minister, I look forward to receiving your answer so I can convey this to the local and other faith leaders that have contacted me and also so Victoria’s faith communities can clearly understand what the policy of the government is.