http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2008/s2555325.htm
THIS ISN’T PANDEMIC 2 NICOLA.
NICOLA ROXON: This is a precautionary step that the Government’s taken. The chief medical officer made the recommendation to me. We have other diseases that are already listed as quarantinable and they give the chief medical officer and then his delegate, for example at various airports across the country, the power to take additional steps. We’ve added swine flu to the list. It means that if the circumstances change very quickly, that we would be able to use those extra powers if they were needed. But I do need to hasten to reassure your audience that at this stage there is no suggestion that we’d need to use those powers, but we don’t want to be in a position if the circumstances change quickly that we are delayed for not having taken this precautionary step tonight.
NICOLA ROXON: It gives the chief medical officer the power to change circumstances, particularly at our airports or our ports. They – the most extreme of those would be, for example, isolating someone, perhaps in their own home. But there are other steps that are more minor; perhaps disinfecting aircraft when they’re arriving. These sorts of steps go from relatively mild to quite intrusive, and we certainly are a long way from needed to take those steps when we have no confirmed cases currently of swine flu in Australia.
NICOLA ROXON: Well, look, my understanding is that we haven’t needed to use these powers. We of course weren’t in government during the previous threats. But the powers have been put in place because we’ve seen in recent times and increased threat from SARS, from bird flu. But we need to make sure that the current threat from swine flu is included so that we can act quickly if circumstances need to change. I’m very pleased, though, the reports from the first day of the changed procedures at airports for flights from the Americas have shown the community to be very cooperative and we’ve had no suggestion that these powers would be needed, even if the alert moves to a higher level.
NICOLA ROXON: Yes, it’s probably not correct to say that we’ve got 89 suspected cases. We have 89 people who have been travelling in the area who are showing some flu symptoms. It can take anywhere from a day to several days because there are three different steps of testing and a person, of course, can be cleared from the first stage, then we get a result pretty quickly. If someone goes to the second or third stage, it takes us more time. It’s a very complex process of the way you treat the DNA and match it up with the identified signifiers, if you like, of this disease. So, really, it can be as quick as several hours. It can be as long as probably 48, slightly more, if there were some difficulty with the way the sample was being used or responding.
So basically the government overreacts to the issue and then uses laws designed to protect Australia against polio to pretty much round people up into camps.
Vunderbar! “The powers won’t be needed”. You’ve proven time and time again you refuse to relinquish powers. We’re all fucked. Hahahhahahaha.