As I’ve written many times, Australia is plagued with two prime ministers. On the one hand, there’s Scott Morrison the international statesman, standing up to the Chinese behemoth and forging far-reaching new international alliances. Then there’s domestic Scotty from Marketing, wishy-washing from poll-driven pillar to focus-group post.
Through the China Virus pandemic, my biggest criticism of Morrison has been that he has gutlessly sat back and given the Little Hitlers in the state capitals the running. Most of the worst pandemic decisions have been the premiers’ doing — especially in the Labor states. This is largely a consequence of Australia’s federal system, where health and emergency management are state government remits.
Even in the most relevant federal responsibility, quarantine, Morrison has failed dismally. The Australian Constitution is quite clear: quarantine is a federal government responsibility. Yet, Morrison has sat by and let premiers run their hotel quarantine sideshows — with literally deadly consequences in Victoria.
But, has Morrison just been too weak to face down the premiers? Or something worse?
In his two weeks or so in office New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet has done more to lift the spirits of the nation than all the other state leaders combined in the 20 months since the pandemic hit — yet he’s been rebuffed by the Prime Minister.
Since replacing Gladys Berejiklian as NSW premier, Perrottet has been a breath of fresh air in the stuffy cell Australians have been imprisoned in for two years. Perrottet continually argued against lockdowns, as Treasurer. As premier, he has accelerated NSW’s reopening schedule. He also opposes vaccine passports.
On Friday Perrottet, told us the bleeding obvious: that we cannot live in a hermit kingdom forever and he decided to open his state for all as of November 1, and abolish quarantine for all vaccinated travellers. While this is far from perfect since it entrenches vaccine apartheid for which, as Professor Andrew Pollard, who led the Oxford vaccine team, has stated there is no epidemiological justification, and as Joel Agius wrote in these pages, there is no “freedom day” until we are all free, it signalled a mighty move in the right direction.
Spectator Australia
And, suddenly, Scott Morrison remembered his Constitutional authority. Within hours of Perrottet’s announcement, it was overruled by the Prime Minister: Australia’s borders would remain closed to international tourists.
So, why did the PM who sat by while, say, Daniel Andrews in Victoria set up a hotel quarantine scheme that was obviously destined for disaster do that? In fact, Morrison was openly rebuffed by Andrews on federal assistance in Victoria. Morrison has made no condemnation of Tasmanian premier Peter Gutwein — a fellow Liberal — locking down half the island state over a single covid case, even though nearly 70% of Tasmanians are fully vaccinated.
Morrison also ignored his constitutional responsibilities by refusing to allow the federal government to participate in Clive Palmer’s High Court challenge to West Australia’s border closures.
Yet, somehow, Morrison found his constitutional mojo when the NSW premier tried to remove the jackboot, just a little, from Australians’ throats.
Which side are you on, Scotty? Which side are you on?
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