The federal treasurer said he did not accept claims the review was a “light touch” exercise that should have been set up to investigate all aspects of the response.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the states and territories will be able to have their say on border closures and other key decisions when a new inquiry examines the response to COVID-19, amid fierce criticism of the government for focusing the review on federal issues.from joining the inquiry to consider their decisions, saying he did not accept claims it was a “light touch” exercise that should have been set up to investigate all aspects of the response.
“We’ve focused on the Commonwealth responsibilities because we’re a government that takes responsibility for the things that are in our wheelhouse,” Chalmers said when asked about the border closures on Sunday morning. National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds told this masthead the inquiry should “put a spotlight” on the needs of children and the implications of the school closures, while former NSW premier Dominic Perrottet also saidAustralia reported more than 11.5 million confirmed COVID cases and almost 23,000 deaths from the virus from January 2020 to the middle of September this year, while the federal response cost taxpayers $291 billion.
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