Coronavirus

Ms BEDFORD (Florey) (15:35): In my remarks today, I want to firstly acknowledge and recognise the collective work of everyone in these unprecedented times, from our healthcare workers at all levels and in all areas, to the educators, the carers, the families and everyone in between. Everything we do is important to our collective communities. We must make sure we do as much as we can to make the next few months as bearable as possible.

To paraphrase the New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, 'We'—she means the government—'will do all we can to protect you. Now we are asking you to do all you can to protect each other. None of us can do this alone.' They are strong words. Whatever we do, we must support each other through these difficult and trying times.

I cannot put it better than US resident, Joe Newman, a 107-year-old man living in Florida who is one of the last survivors of the Spanish flu pandemic left in the world. He is reported recently as saying:

You have to be my crutch. I have to be yours. It's been that way through every crisis we've had. And then, we find, when we do look back, that is what got us through it.

This generation now faces a dilemma of the ilk of the 1918 Spanish flu, the Great Depression and the world wars on either side of it. Just as those generations came through, so must we, and we are in a much better position in many ways to do so.

Being the grandmother of the house gives me the right, I am sure, to use a few old wise sayings throughout this contribution, grounded as they are in the experiences attributed to the women who have usually guided us through the centuries. A stitch in time saves nine, and that means keeping our minds on little things we can all do, like washing our hands properly and often—no longer a little thing on the front line—and using soap, which Mark Twain observed will be 'deadly in the long run'. Good hygiene habits will go a long way to making sure we do our part in keeping things safer. In perspective, it is a simple remedy that is tried and true.

Most people are social and like talking, so let necessity be the mother of invention, as we create and learn new ways of staying in touch since the world as we knew it has changed. Let's learn to strengthen our immune systems by eating as much fresh food as possible. Here, I must give a plug for my favourite brassica, which is broccoli. Exercise is also important, such as walking. The other thing we need to understand is that our bodies need to rest to repair. Smelling the roses becomes a really important pastime as we learn that loss of smell could be an early indicator or symptom. Many around the world are infected with the novel coronavirus—COVID-19, or SARS-CoV-2, as I am told it is officially known now—and, sadly, many have died.

Here in Australia, the epidemic curve has been increasing daily and we must do all we can to begin the decrease. Two weeks ago, as I worked after our last sitting week, I was told by respected public health expert, Adjunct Professor Bill Bowtell, following his appearance on Q&A, that Australia was taking action too late. Bill was at the forefront of the 1980s grim reaper campaign against the HIV/AIDS pandemic. His actions at the time of doing more than was seen necessary put Australia at the front of the fight and Australia led the way. Now, we can also do the same thing: lead the way by going hard and fast. Despite all that has been done since we spoke on 9 March, which is now 15 days ago, I worry that his prediction may yet be true.

Opinion is divided, and it is clear there is an active debate among the epidemiologists about how to handle this crisis. While appreciating the rapidly changing situation, constantly changing messages and constantly changing decisions are not hitting the mark and are clearly failing to reach home to all members of the community, with at least one in three Australians still thinking we are overreacting according to one poll today, while the other two are either distraught, undecided or do not know what to do.

However, worldwide evidence should surely be enough to quash any doubts about the need for action that is dependable, direct and decisive coming from a nationwide trusted source. No-one is an expert in all areas of the crisis. The nodding heads may remain in the background. We can only hope that the measures taken in recent weeks will be enough to avoid the worst that we have seen in other countries. I for one have welcomed the national cabinet, but as we have seen they too are divided in the best approach after considering the medical evidence.

Even as we see unimaginable queues at Centrelink offices of people in desperate need for income support, we need to ask why they do not have better information on how to register, even in the face of a crashing myGov system, and they need to be reassured. Banks have moved to reassure people and others must move to do that, too. Messages about guaranteed income for workers and businesses of all sizes and guaranteed essential supplies of food must be better transmitted.

Our Centrelink staff and retail staff are doing their best in very difficult circumstances. Without them things would be immeasurably worse. We are reliant, too, on the transport workers who move us and the supplies to keep us going, just as we are on the cleaners, the GPs and the pathology workers so vital in identifying the spread. Now more than ever we need our communities to trust in our political systems and leaders. That can only happen if we are fully informed and united in our response to this crisis.