Former top cops blast Andrews’ power grab

Former Victoria Police chief commissioner Kel Glare and a group of former police commissioners and top cops have blasted Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews’ proposed new powers as dangerous and undemocratic.

The intervention by the respected community leaders comes on the back of a powerful group of retired judges and leading QCs also expressing alarm the proposed laws would be “unprecedented, excessive and open to abuse”.

The COVID-19 Omnibus (Emergency Measures) and Other Acts Amendment Bill would allow the Andrews government to appoint anyone as a designated officer with the power to arrest anyone with COVID-19 (or their close contacts) who the authorised officer reasonably believes “is likely” to breach an emergency direction.

https://www.afr.com/politics/former-top-cops-blast-andrews-power-grab-20201001-p560z4