Fury as old, sick to miss out
STATE Burdekin MP Dale Last is furious over the Australian Electoral Commission’s decision not to visit all aged-care facilities and hospitals to help those who can’t make it to the polls cast their vote.
Mr Last said the decision had caused “great angst” in his electorate, with his office receiving a number of calls from aged-care residents who feared they would not be able to vote.
“As one resident said, vaccinated people can visit an aged-care facility, why can’t the Australian Electoral Commission?” Mr Last said.
“It is completely unacceptable that mobile polling for infirm people is not available.
“The AEC’S website confirms that their staff are vaccinated, and we are meant to be living with Covid, so denying people their democratic right to vote is something that should be ringing alarm bells.”
Mr Last said while postal votes were an option, the mail was unreliable in regional Queensland.
“Postal vote applications are open until (Wednesday) at 6pm but, to be eligible, people need to have received their ballot paper before the election,” Mr Last said.
“We all know that the postal service in regional areas means that the chances of that happening are virtually nil.”
“My message to people with loved ones in aged-care homes or hospital is to play their part. If possible, that might mean picking up your loved one and taking them to a polling booth but, for some people, that is simply not an option.”
“The health directives permit vaccinated people to visit hospitals and aged-care facilities, so any attempt to blame Covid is a cop-out.”
The AEC said in a statement it was supporting aged-care facilities and hospitals – but there would be different services this election.
“We have liaised with federal and state/territory health authorities about a broad range of aspects of the delivery of the federal election,” it said. “Internally, we set up a Covid Variants Response Unit to monitor the pandemic and assess potential impacts on our service offering. We also have a pandemic adviser from the federal Department of Health providing advice. Our priority is to balance voting access and health risks – particularly in vulnerable settings.”
The AEC’S statement said mobile voting teams were visiting some agedcare facilities, with the commission contacting facilities before the election to see if teams could be accommodated.
“For those centres that could not accommodate a team safely we’ve been supporting with information and postal-voting services,” it said.
The AEC said mobile teams would not be at hospitals – but they never had been – with voting supported by nearby in-person voting booths and postal voting.
The statement said unexpected hospital admissions could make voting impossible for some. “Australia is far superior to most others when it comes to participation and voter access, however circumstances such as natural disasters, personal circumstances or the effects of a health crisis can have an impact,” it said.