The Hon. Peter Gutwein MP ENVIRONMENTAL Premier of HEALTH (TASMANIA) Ground Floor, Public Building INCORPORATED 53 St John Street ABN 89 407 489 527 LAUNCESTON TAS 7250 PO Box 2222 FORTITUDE VALLEY [email protected] QLD 4006

Ph: 07 3854 1113 Fax 07 3252 9084 29 October 2020 Email: [email protected] or [email protected]

Web: www.ehatas.org.au Dear Premier,

I am writing to you on behalf of Environmental Health Australia (Tasmania). Environmental Health Australia (EHA) is the premier environmental health professional organisation in Australia which advocates environmental health issues and represents the professional interests of all environmental health practitioners.

Premier, in your press conference on 23 October 2020, you announced that the has developed a framework for larger-scale COVID safe events, to enable organisers to apply to hold an event where patron attendance exceeds the current gathering restrictions.

You also explained that events will be categorised into 3 levels, Level 1 - which will require a COVID Safe Plan, Level 2 - which will require an application to be approved and signed off by State Growth and Communities Tasmania and Level 3 - which will require an application that needs to be signed off by Public Health.

Further information released by Minister Courtney, indicated that this framework – ‘A Framework for COVID-19 Safe Events and Activities in Tasmania’ will come into effect by 1 December 2020.

While EHA Tasmania fully supports measures to minimise the risks to public health at public events, we are bewildered, disappointed and left wanting, at the lack of consultation with Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) and Councils on this matter. As key stakeholders working in the regulatory area of Places of Assembly (POA), as defined under the Public Health Act 1997 (PHA Act), EHOs have a key regulatory responsibility that applies to public events in their roles at Councils. The provisions are:

• Councils must ensure that the provisions of the PHA Act are complied with and carry out functions as the Minister or Director determines.

• Environmental Health Officers are appointed by Councils in accordance with the requirements of the Public Health Act 1997 to carry out any functions directed by the Director of Public Health. In turn, EHOs ensure that the provisions of this Act are complied with in the municipal area in respect of which they are appointed. They may impose conditions on persons/activities according to the powers or functions as nominated officers under this Act.

• EHOs appointed by Councils have responsibility for assessing applications for POA licences, with Council powers to grant or refuse an application and apply any condition so that

the holder of such a licence operates, uses or manages that place in a manner that does not pose a threat to public health.

• The Director of Public Health has specified by public notice that a POA licence is required for the following: ‘a mass outdoor event’. This means an outdoor event where one thousand people or more are present for two hours or more and includes but is not limited to any performance, exhibition, circus, festival, food festival, pageant, regatta, sports event, dance and publicly advertised lecture.

Our members have confirmed that they and their Councils have not been contacted or offered appropriate opportunities to provide input into the development of this framework, they have had no advice on how this will link or overlap with other Council processes including, but not limited to Place of Assembly licencing or how they might know that COVID-19 Safe work plans that might apply to an event are of a sufficient standard to minimise the risks to public health.

Can you please advise on how this lack of consultation and transparency occurred, noting that a myriad of committees and forums have been established for consultative purposes, yet we as vital stakeholders and members of our local government communities with influence and mechanisms in place to enable smooth transitions to changes in processes, have been left high and dry. This is further magnified by the short timeframe until the proposed introduction of this framework and the start festive/events season.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours Sincerely,

Melissa Burn State President Environmental Health Australia (Tasmania) Incorporated