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'My bad': Racing Minister says he pushed for Cox Plate crowds, but admits it was a mistake
By Simone Fox Koob
Racing Minister Martin Pakula says on reflection the decision to allow horse owners to attend the upcoming Cox Plate was "a mistake" as he acknowledged that he had pursued the move on behalf of the racing industry.
"I understand that people were extremely unhappy," he told ABC Radio Melbourne this morning.
He said that of the 1250 people who would have been allowed at the race, 750 were going to be there anyway – people such as media, strappers and jockeys. The 500 extra people allowed to attend were horse owners or connections and they would not have been able to access hospitality or betting services.
Racing Minister Martin Pakula.Credit:Joe Armao
"Nevertheless I was made, very quickly, aware of the reaction of the community. I spoke to the Mooney Valley Racing Club and am happy to put my hand up and say 'my bad' and the decision was reversed last night," he said.
Asked whose idea it was, Mr Pakula said: "It was a request from the club which I then pursued as Racing Minister."
"Bearing in mind this is the 100th running of an incredibly significant race, so not just a significant race but a significant running of the race, and the club came to government and said, 'would there be support for a small number of people to be on course?'," he said.
"I pursued that on behalf of the industry. I don't shy away from the fact I was the one pushing and proposing it, but it was a mistake."
He said that the plan had been workshopped with the Health Department, who had agreed on the crowd number.
He acknowledged that some people had raised concerns that the decision was not a good look, but refused to go into the specifics of the discussions of cabinet.
"I'm not going to talk about the ins and outs of those discussions. I'm taking responsibility," he said.
Mr Pakula also said he regretted the fact that the negative backlash had to some extent taken away from the positive news that Victoria may have recorded zero cases on Tuesday.
"Sometimes in this business you make a call that's not the right one and the best thing to do in those circumstances is fix it and apologise," he said.
"It's not something I was dragged to. It became clear to me during the evening it was an error and I resolved to fix that error."
AstraZeneca US COVID-19 vaccine trial may resume as soon as this week
AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine trial in the United States is expected to resume as early as this week after the US Food and Drug Administration completed its review of a serious illness, four sources told Reuters.
AstraZeneca's large, late-stage US trial has been on hold since September 6, after a participant in the company's British trial fell ill with what was suspected to be a rare spinal inflammatory disorder called transverse myelitis.
The sources, who were briefed on the matter but asked to remain anonymous, said they have been told the trial could resume later this week. It was unclear how the FDA would characterise the illness, they said.
AstraZeneca had been seen as a frontrunner in the race for a vaccine until its trials were put on hold.Credit:AP
An FDA spokeswoman declined to comment.
The agency is requiring researchers conducting the trial to add information about the incident to consent forms signed by study participants, according to one of the sources.
British regulatory officials previously reviewed the illness and determined there was “insufficient evidence to say for certain” that it was or was not related to the vaccine. It permitted the trial to resume in the UK, according to a draft of the updated consent form shared with Reuters. Reuters
Have you caught up with a loved one this week?
By Robyn Grace
It's not total freedom but many Melburnians are spreading their wings this week after Premier Daniel Andrews announced an extension of limits to movement from five to 25 kilometres.
That has meant the world to some families on opposite sides of the city, who have discovered their 25-kilometre limits now overlap.
It could be a walking track, the corner of the street or the windswept grass of an underused sports field, but those reunions have been months in the making.
'We are just looking for consistency': Hillsong continues push for eased restrictions
By Mary Ward
Hillsong pastor Brian Houston has continued his push for eased restrictions on places of worship in NSW, telling 2GB's Ben Fordham it did not make sense that he could only have 100 people at a service as 40,000 gather for the NRL grand final.
Hillsong's auditorium in north-west Sydney can seat 4000. But in NSW churches are capped at 100 attendees, regardless of their size.
"We are just looking for consistency: whether the room is big like that or a tiny chapel that can only seat 100, the rule is exactly the same," Mr Houston said.
Hillsong pastor Brian HoustonCredit:Janie Barrett
The megachurch pastor said he did not believe interactions between people in a place of worship were higher risk than those between supporters at a football game, noting people get "pretty close and pretty excited" while barracking for a team.
This weekend, ANZ Stadium will host 40,000 spectators for the NRL grand final.
"People shouting and high-fiving: it's just the inconsistency of it," Mr Houston said.
Mr Houston said Hillsong had moved its services online during the pandemic. He said it was "too soon" for it to pack out its churches the way it used to, but he believed capacity limits could be increased with social distancing in place.
"With mental health being such a big deal, and obviously it's becoming a bigger deal for some people ... I still think there's that real need for people to be in the building."
Speaking on the program yesterday, Jobs Minister Stuart Ayres said the NSW government expected to make an announcement about capacity limits for places of worship soon.
Stop 'throwing stones' and work together, Lindsay Fox tells politicians
By Simone Fox Koob
Trucking magnate Lindsay Fox says politicians need to stop "throwing stones" and has called for greater bipartisanship in Australia as the country recovers from the pandemic.
Mr Fox, founder of logistics giant Linfox, told ABC Radio National on Wednesday that politicians should be focusing on the "common enemy" of COVID-19 rather than attacking each other.
"I think everyone is frustrated but the real situation is there is a problem out there that none of us have had the experience of exposure to. The aspect of a virus that you can't see has created probably the biggest catastrophe in my lifetime and I have been through quite a few," he said.
Trucking magnate Lindsay Fox.Credit:Jesse Marlow
"It's an area where the whole political community should be working together to eliminate the common enemy.
"What we have at the moment is political sectors of our community or communities fighting rather than getting together and fighting the issue, not the man. This is like a game of football where you are attacking the man and not worrying about the football."
His comments come after an ugly spat between the Premier Daniel Andrews and federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who accused the Victorian government of having a "callous indifference" and not opening the economy back up quickly enough.
"You throw a stone and someone will throw one back at you," said Mr Fox.
"If there is a common enemy, you get together and fight it and we are not doing that as a nation."
Mr Fox said that even though he disagreed with some decisions made by Mr Andrews, he respected his commitment to the decisions made by his government.
"To the Premier's credit, he has had the balls to stay through the problem that started and he has carried through where other people all around the world ... have now got a second bite back three times worse than the first round."
"Some tough decisions have got to be made and he has been tough enough to make them. I haven't agreed with them, but they have had to be made because we are coming out of it now."
He again called for greater unity across the political spectrum.
"We have a common enemy and they don't seem to realise this," he said.
"We have to unite and do things that are constructive and beneficial so when we come out of it we have some additional friends to support this marvellous country we live in."
Victoria records three new cases, no deaths
Victoria's low case numbers continue: the state recorded three new COVID-19 cases and no deaths yesterday.
The 14-day rolling average has now dropped to 6.6, down from 6.8 on Tuesday. The number of mystery cases has dropped to 10 between October 5 and 18.
The Melbourne metro average is now 6.2, down from 6.4 on Tuesday, while the regional average remains stable at 0.4.
Keep up the good work, Victorians!
Blowout in city travel times predicted as lockdown eases
By Timna Jacks
Trips on Melbourne’s major highways could blow out by half an hour compared with traffic before the COVID-19 crisis, as city-bound commuters face gridlock once lockdown measures are lifted.
A 70 per cent drop in public transport trips into Melbourne’s CBD because of infection fears could result in thousands of extra cars flooding the West Gate, Eastern and Monash freeways during morning peak hour.
Modelling by Movement & Place Consulting warns CBD-bound traffic could increase on these roads by 68 per cent, 46 per cent and 27 per cent respectively, compared with traffic before COVID-19, adding 20 to 30 minutes to trips.
Trips into Melbourne's CBD via public transport once the city's lockdown ends are expected to drop by 70 per cent drop compared with pre-COVID-19 levels.Credit:Eddie Jim
The forecasts have sparked warnings by transport experts and public transport users that a return to a CBD dominated by cars and car parks would reverse decades of work by planners to make the city more liveable, cleaner and safer for pedestrians and cyclists.
They have called on the state government to promote a return to safe public transport over a reliance on cars.
As Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews eases coronavirus restrictions by allowing gatherings of up to 10 people outdoors and opening hospitality and retail by November 1, modelling prepared for The Age predicts car trips into the city will soar by 33 per cent in coming months. There will be an 90,000 daily car trips to the CBD alone.
Police concerned about rise in road trauma in Victoria as restrictions lift
By Simone Fox Koob
Police in Victoria are concerned about an increase in road trauma as coronavirus restrictions lift across the state and people begin to get back behind the wheel.
Seven lives have been lost on Victorian roads over the past week, prompting police to launch a new road policing operation and urge the community to drive safely, particularly over the two upcoming long weekends.
Assistant Commissioner Libby Murphy said police expect road trauma to increase as more people get back on the road.
Assistant Commissioner Libby Murphy.Credit:Jason South
"It is devastating to me that in the last week seven people have already fallen victim to this," she said.
"We’re urging everyone to go back to basics. That means buckling up, slowing down, and not driving while impaired."
There will be increased patrols on local roads in metro Melbourne, and breath and drug tests "in locations where the booze buses aren’t typically spotted", police say.
"We also know that alcohol consumption has increased during the coronavirus pandemic and are concerned about the impact this will have," said Assistant Commissioner Murphy.
Operation Saturn will run from October 22 to November 8.
Sutton told lawyers they didn't need to hand security guard emails to inquiry
By Richard Baker, Tammy Mills and Michael Fowler
Health Department lawyers say Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton told them they did not need to hand the hotel quarantine inquiry a series of emails that are now casting doubt over his claims he didn’t know about the hiring of private security guards.
The emails, which weren't provided to the inquiry until the past week, contradict Professor Sutton's evidence about when he found out private security was being used in the bungled hotel quarantine program.
Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton gave evidence at the hotel quarantine inquiry last month.
In a letter to the inquiry, Department of Health and Human Services lawyers said Professor Sutton told them the emails did not change his evidence to the inquiry and did not need to be disclosed.
"Professor Sutton stands by that evidence which was provided honestly," the letter, published by the inquiry on Tuesday, said.
"Professor Sutton further instructed us that he did not consider he needed to clarify his evidence and therefore the email did not need to be provided to the board for that reason."
In his written and verbal evidence last month, Professor Sutton told the inquiry that he didn't know private security was being used in the hotels until media reports in late May about COVID-19 outbreaks in quarantine.
Last week, The Age revealed a series of emails were sent to Professor Sutton in March and April that talked about using private security. He has now been given a week to provide a new affidavit to address the latest information.
VRC still hopeful there will be crowds at Melbourne Cup after Cox Plate crowd reversal
By Simone Fox Koob
The Victoria Racing Club is still hopeful spectators will be welcomed at this year's Melbourne Cup after a backlash forced the government to reverse its decision to have crowds at this weekend's Cox Plate.
The decision was reversed late on Tuesday night by Racing Minister Martin Pakula, just five hours after his office announced up to 1000 owners and connections would be allowed to attend Moonee Valley for the running of the Manikato Stakes on Friday night and the Cox Plate on Saturday.
On Wednesday morning, VRC chair Amanda Elliott said they are still talking to the government about getting crowds to the Cup.
"We are absolutely working with government and I think restrictions should look a bit different come Cup week," she told radio station 3AW.
"We have been working with them for the last three months around the ability to be able to put something on."
Ms Elliott said she understood people's anger over the decision to have crowds at the Cox Plate, but believes that coronavirus restrictions should be eased by Cup week.
"I had some sympathy for people who feel if we can't go to Mum or Dad's funeral or celebrate a wedding, why should people be able to go to the races?" she said.
"I think the restrictions are beginning to look a little inconsistent and people feel angst around that I think. The minister obviously responded to that, whereas the racing industry has demonstrated since March it actually can follow strict biosecurity rules and keep going.
"We have to be able to begin to take some risks. The case numbers are so low and there is support to be able to ease restrictions. There is a level of personal responsibility everyone understands now."
The team organising the Melbourne Cup Carnival have been looking into using the lawns and outdoor seating, including the space in the car parks, to safely host spectators.
Ms Elliot said that using a "completely conservative" estimate, the club believed the course could safely host 8000 people.
"Obviously we don't believe we will get 8000 people, and clearly we are not allowed to at the moment anyway," she said.
"We are still hopeful, clearly racing is going ahead, but still we are hopeful to have some people ... By then restrictions will have eased and [we are hopeful] the race that stops the nation will have some people watching it."
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2020-10-20 20:22:00Z
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