Alex Antic (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I too rise to speak in support of Senator Babet's matter of public importance seeking a royal commission. In 2020 and 2021, anyone who questioned or criticised the lockdowns in this country was called an antivaxxer and a threat to public health. I've noticed since those days that there are members of the public, members of parliament, media commentators—many of them on the Labor side, by the way—who now seek to duck and weave and who have forgotten all about that. They've gone rather quiet on the subject. Do you want to know what's happened? I'll tell you what's happened. The truth has caught up to them. The lockdown narrative has become absolutely indefensible, as has the damage through job losses, tragic suicides, divorces and increases in health problems. They've all become more evident. The time will come when every single aspect of the COVID narrative, including the vaccine mandates, the mask mandates, staying 1.5 metres apart—remember that?—and so on will become utterly indefensible. It's a matter of urgency that we examine now why, as Senator Canavan said, Australia's excess death rates are increasing after the pandemic. This was after everyone got their 'safe and effective' vaccines. Do you remember they were 'safe and effective'? But no-one wants to ask what is causing the excess death rate. There are more excess deaths occurring at the moment than there were in 2020. The ABS reported that in 2022 there were 190,394 deaths that had occurred by 31 December and were registered by 28 February of this year. That is 25,235—that's 15.3 per cent—more than the historical average. I'm a bit confused as to why this isn't being investigated already. This particular issue of excess deaths must be the lynchpin. If nothing else, a royal commission must be sought in order to uncover this issue.

In the beginning of 2020, we saw Australia plunge into an illiberal, draconian period of history. I think historians will reflect on this period over the last few years and utterly marvel at how this hysteria was created over a virus that had a 0.16 per cent fatality rate. They will write dissertations about how the power of media propaganda fuelled this, and how imperative it is that we learn from this and make sure that this is never, ever repeated. Under the cloak of emergency, legislation that entrenched the state's pandemic powers was rushed through our parliaments in the most illiberal manner across the country. This also need to be re-examined.

Today, I stand here in my last 20 seconds to support Senator Babet's call for a royal commission, and to support all of my colleagues who have continued to call for this royal commission. It's time the Albanese government put its money where its mouth is and called a royal commission so we can get to the bottom of this.