David Limbrick MP | Politician
David Limbrick MP
Phone: +61 3 9584 4013
Address: Suite 1/1174 Nepean Hwy 3192 Cheltenham, VIC, Australia
Website:
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25.01.2022 Today I talked with Gideon Rozner on his podcast about the latest developments with the Omnibus Bill and freedoms in Victoria. Check it out.
24.01.2022 At 7pm on Wednesday I'll be hosting a livestream with Paul Silverberg, Liberal Democrats candidate for the Melbourne City Council. Join us for a general discussion about Melbourne City and the Council election, and to answer your questions.
24.01.2022 Yesterday our freedom was once again taken from us. I attended the demonstration to see and defend the right to protest, however, I later found, it does not exist. I was arrested and processed by Victoria Police, despite committing no crime. ... The government has a lot of explaining to do.
23.01.2022 ***Long Post on upcoming Police and PSO Bill also being debated this week*** My office has been contacted by many community members concerned about the expansion of powers in the upcoming Omnibus Bill. If you have been concerned about the way that the public health orders have been enforced during the pandemic then this Bill should be of concern to you also. ... The Police and Emergency Legislation Amendment Bill 2020 expands the role that Protective Services Officers (PSO's) have in our community. Some key concerns: -PSO's only have 12 weeks of training. -There is no evidence that PSOs deter crime or provide community security, and no compelling reason to expand their powers. (See statement from Youthlaw linked below) -There is concern that an expanded role for PSO's will lead to further over policing of vulnerable cohorts, such as young people, aboriginal people and others. -Expands the ability to declare an area a "designated place" where PSO's have additional powers and hands this power to Police to declare these areas. -Creates a provision to expand PSO role in declared emergencies, such as now, to cover the whole state. Powers that PSO's have in a designated area include: -Issue infringements for using "profane indecent or obscene language or threatening abusive or insulting words". Penalty $1,652 or imprisonment for 2 months. -Issue infringements for being publicly drunk. $1,321 fine or $3,304 for drunk and disorderly. -Arrest people for being drunk and disorderly. (It should be noted that this government announced last year that they would remove this offence). -Conduct a warrantless search under section 82 of the Drugs Poisons and Controlled Substances Act. The relevant officer has to have "a reasonable suspicion" that a person is in possession of illicit drugs but this is a very low bar in application. At a time when we are still waiting for any significant response to an inquiry into IBAC and police oversight that was conducted in the last term of Parliament it is completely unreasonable to further expand police or PSO powers. Earlier this year my colleague Tim Quilty MLC - Liberal Democrats - Northern Victoria introduced a motion calling on the Government to expand both the powers and resources at IBAC so that we could have an appropriate civilian oversight body to handle allegations of misconduct in our Police Force. This proposal is not anti-police, but now more than ever would be a critical measure to restore public confidence that our police and PSO's act appropriately and that there is transparent accountability when they do the wrong thing. Police Accountability Project published a detailed article on why we need this today: https://www.policeaccountability.org.au//how-close-is-vic/ Read the statement from Youthlaw and the Youth Affairs Council Victoria here: http://youthlaw.asn.au/media-release-youth-advocates-rejec/ You can read the legislation here: https://content.legislation.vic.gov.au//bills/591092bi1.pdf
22.01.2022 Premier: "This is shameful behaviour" Me: "It's not shameful for someone to stand up for human rights." Some facts they didn't report on:... - The water was provided in a bucket they borrowed from the pub. Does this seem like good planning and hygiene to you? Of course, the police had bottled water for themselves - paid for with taxes taken from the protesters. - Processing everyone was delayed due to their computer systems not working properly. The reason I wasn't given a fine on the spot is because of that. Maybe they were using a supercomputer?
22.01.2022 I like fireworks. One upon a time I used to live in Japan and I was impressed that you could buy beer and fireworks at 7-11. I burnt my fingers. I regret nothing. Happy new year!
21.01.2022 Things just got super interesting! Follow me on Twitter to see where this goes.
20.01.2022 Serious questions to answer about what happened yesterday.
19.01.2022 Why I still oppose the COVID-19 Omnibus (Emergency Measures) and Other Acts Amendment Bill 2020. Although the Government has signaled their intent to amend out the preventative detention and has clarified who could be appointed as an Authorised Officer and what powers they would have, I still have serious concerns. Effectively, the bill plus the amendment will allow some of the existing authorised officer powers to be extended to other classes such as Police, PSOs, WorkSafe... Inspectors, Health Service Professionals, Interstate Public Servants and individuals with specific skills. The summary of these classes and powers is in the attached images. Some of these powers that concern me: - Victoria Police, PSOs, WorkSafe inspectors, Interstate Public servants and Health Service Professionals will have warrantless search and seizure powers (c) - Power (j) "direct any other person to take any other action that the authorised officer considers is necessary to eliminate or reduce the risk to public health;" is already far too broad and I am not happy with existing authorised officers having it. I strongly oppose giving this power to Worksafe Inspectors, PSOs, Police, etc. - The class "Individuals with specific relevant skills and expertise but who are not VPS employees (eg ACCO/CALD community workers)" is also concerning. "CALD" means "Culturally and Linguistically Diverse". I think the intent here is to have CALD community leaders appointed as Authorised Officers and they will have to power to demand information and require people to give their name and address. I do not support community workers being given this sort of power. I do have some other lesser concerns with the bill, but the expansion of these powers to more classes of people is my main concern with the bill and I will maintain opposition.
19.01.2022 To stay up to date with Liberal Democrats news and events, do something interesting before the new year and sign up at the link below. It takes only seconds, helps us fight for your rights and best of all, it’s free!
19.01.2022 A brief summary of what Tim and I got up to last week. Please like our rebooted Liberal Democrats Victoria page!
17.01.2022 I'm happy to introduce the Liberal Democrats lead candidate for our Melbourne City Council ticket, Paul Silverberg. Paul spent part of his childhood growing up under an authoritarian Government. Later in life, he moved to Australia to enjoy our freedoms. He joined the Liberal Democrats and stood to run for council because he wants to be a defender of our freedoms and help Melbourne businesses get back to work. Please like and share Paul's page and best of luck!
17.01.2022 It all makes sense now... Sort of.
17.01.2022 What happened in SA is crazy. One lie to contact tracers resulted in: - "experts" talking about a "supercharged" virus. Which looks like total nonsense. - Lockdown of an entire state - with all of the economic and human rights impacts that come with it. - The state opposition didn't bother to question anything and simply went along with it. You had one job!... Disappointingly, many South Australians simply cheered on the destruction of their freedom. They talked about "science", but there's nothing scientific about a lockdown. It's medieval. There may be situations where it's necessary to temporarily limit human rights. Those situations must be justified by the best evidence possible and that evidence must be available for scrutiny. In Victoria, we have seen none of the evidence that the public health orders were based on. There has been a demand for documents passed in the Legislative Council, but the Government still hasn't produced them. Science isn't a religion that requires belief and "trusting the experts". Science is a philosophy and method that relies on ideas being tested. Hiding the evidence is anti science. What do they have to hide?
17.01.2022 People have rights, regardless of what they believe. Government must never get away with choosing who gets to exercise their right to peaceful assembly.
17.01.2022 I was invited on to Raf Epstein's Drive show on ABC this afternoon to talk about what happened yesterday at the protests in the city.
16.01.2022 I appeared on ABC Drive this afternoon with Rafael Epstein to discuss the Government's backdown on the section of the Omnibus bill relating to new authorised officer powers. Although it's good to see the worst part of this bill removed, I still have serious concerns about how the Government is using the emergency powers and their interactions with human rights.
16.01.2022 Significant win on Omnibus bill! I have just been informed by the Government that they have backed down on the new detention powers being given to authorised officers. These powers were a significant concern to many in the community. Well done to everyone that has campaigned against these new powers. I'd also like to thank my cross bench colleagues who appear to have stood firm on this important issue. ... My team is now analysing the amended bill and we will reconsider our position on it.
16.01.2022 You can watch today’s proceedings in Parliament live at the link below which has already started. I will be presenting 4 petitions at around 12.45pm, making a members statement at around 1.15pm and debate on the Omnibus bill will begin around 2.10pm and likely go late into the night. https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/video-a/live-broadcasting
16.01.2022 I haven’t asked for anyone to resign during the pandemic. I consider demanding a resignation a very serious thing. However, what happened yesterday is a step too far. Heads need to roll.
14.01.2022 Victorians, the Liberal Democrats need your help to keep the party registered! The Victorian Electoral Commission is currently confirming our membership to check we remain eligible for registration as a political party. Victorian members of the Liberal Democrats should have recently received a form from the VEC to fill out and send back, confirming they are a party member.... If you: Have received one of these forms from the VEC but haven't sent it back yet - please send it as soon as possible! Did receive one of these forms but have lost it - please contact us as soon as possible and we can provide you with another form. Have not received one of these forms but are a party member and believe you should have - please contact us so we can check that your membership and details are up-to-date and properly recorded in our system, and ensure that you will be included if we need to submit a supplementary list to the VEC. You can contact us by email at [email protected] or by phone on (03) 9674 7381 If you are not a member and would like to sign up so you can help us stay registered, you can sign up for free by clicking here: https://www.ldp.org.au/associate (financial memberships also available) To everyone who has already sent the form back to the VEC - Thank you for your support and for helping ensure we can continue to fight for the liberty of all Victorians!
13.01.2022 On Thursday this week in Parliament, we will be debating the Human Tissue Amendment Bill 2020. This bill allows pre-death medical procedures to occur for people who are organ donors. This could be medical procedures to preserve or check the status of body organs before death. The bill allows for consent to be provided through "Medical decision makers" - usually family or through a written consent provided by the patient earlier. ... The Liberal Democrats are supportive of organ donation and the ability for people to be able to provide consent for these procedures to happen. However, there is a section in the bill that allows doctors to make this decision on the patient's behalf if prior consent is unknown and there is no medical decision maker that is contactable and they do not believe the patient would have had an objection to this procedure. This is a step too far. "No objection" to a medical procedure is not the same as informed consent. I will be presenting an amendment to the bill that removes section 24E, which enables the "no objection" pathway to the procedure happening. The bill can be read here: https://content.legislation.vic.gov.au//202/591146bab1.pdf
12.01.2022 My office will be closing from 5pm today until the 11th of January. Merry Christmas to you all and I hope that Santa brings you a better present than the lump of coal that I will probably get. Let's hope next year is better for everyone.
11.01.2022 More voices in support of the restoration of the right to peaceful assembly. Thank you Liberty Victoria. The government needs to stop cracking down on protests and instead provide advice and guidance on how it can be done safely and tell the police to back off.
11.01.2022 Update on COVID-19 Omnibus (Emergency Measures) and other acts amendment bill 2020. Yesterday I updated you that we had a win with the Government signaling that they would amend the bill to take out some of the worst parts (see image for draft amendment). What does this amendment do?... - Remove the preventative detention powers from the bill. These powers allowed authorised officers to detain people who either tested positive or were close contacts and the authorised officer believed they may not follow directions. Good. - Limit authorised officers to be specific classes with specific powers. Previously, the bill allowed pretty much anyone to be appointed as an authorised officer. This is also good. Do we still have problems with the bill? Yes. - I am still opposing these additional authorised officer appointments. I am not willing to provide more emergency powers to the Government as I have been unhappy with the way directions have been enforced. To be clear, I will still oppose the bill on this basis. - I am also concerned at the severity of some of the penalties and powers in the OH&S section, in particular. What about other parts of the bill? - I have had many people ask about the sections of the bill relating to family reunification orders, claiming that this allows the Government to take children away from their families. This is incorrect. My team has engaged with people that provide services to assist in the reunification process. An example might be a parent who has a substance abuse problem and their children have been placed in out of home care. The current process has a comprehensive treatment programme to allow the person to recover and ensure the child returns to a safe environment. This process may have been interrupted due to the pandemic. The bill simply allows the reunification process to be extended for 6 months. I do not have problems with this part of the bill and if it was separated out, I would support. - I have had people claim that the section of the bill relating to the OH&S Act would somehow exempt ministers and public servants from workplace manslaughter laws. My team has investigated and we do not believe this to be correct. - I do not have concerns with the parts of the bill relating to continuing remote operations of Government facilities such as Parliament Committees, Councils, Courts, etc. - Another part of the bill allows workplace injury payments to continue. I do not have any problem with this part of the bill either. I am not happy with the way the Government has chosen to not engage with the public and educate them on what the bill does and doesn't do. This vacuum has allowed misinformation to flourish. If the Government had engaged with stakeholders properly before presenting the original bill to Parliament, they might have understood many of these concerns that were subsequently raised by legal experts and members of the public.
11.01.2022 Digital rights are an issue that I take seriously and am passionate about. Widespread use of QR codes for contact tracing present new opportunities for criminals to prey on Victorians. I asked about this very issue in Parliament today as I'm concerned about both scammers and the privacy of Victorians. I will publish the response once I receive it. Thanks to Real Rukshan for drawing attention to this very important issue.
11.01.2022 Australia is now a country with large numbers of internally displaced people because our state Governments disregard section 92 of the constitution. This is a disgrace. Read more: https://www.google.com.au//victorias-border-unlikely-to-op
08.01.2022 Good ideas don’t require force.
06.01.2022 Here’s how water was served to protesters who were trapped for hours. They borrowed a bucket from the pub and dipped their hands and cups in it that they’d been touching everyone with. Planning and hygiene fail. Why so long? One reason was their computer system wasn’t working properly. Systems fail. Why were the police even here? Supposedly to protect public health. Epic fail.
06.01.2022 This October, I am encouraging schools, students, and families in my electorate to participate in the 'Peer Support Australia Talk and Walk-a-thon'. We have all been concerned about the effect of the Coronavirus pandemic on the mental health and well-being of our children. Thankfully, schools are opening up again and kids can finally see their friends. This is a great initiative for students to not only engage in physical activity but also to engage in discussions and build c...onnections with their fellow students, especially after months without this connection. To register, and for more information, visit the Peer Support site via the link below. https://peersupport.edu.au/our-programs/external-events/
06.01.2022 Human Tissue Amendment Bill - Debating this week. Next week in Parliament, we will be debating the "Human Tissue Amendment Bill 2020". This bill is intended to allow certain medical procedures to happen before someone dies to prepare or check their organs are suitable for transplantation. The Liberal Democrats are generally supportive of the idea that people should be able to donate their organs to medicine for the benefit of others.... However, consent should always be maintained. Unfortunately, this bill contains the clause below. What it means is that in the case where doctors cannot make contact with a "medical decision maker" for the patient, the doctors may make a decision on their behalf. This is a step too far. Silence does not equal consent. The Liberal Democrats will oppose this bill in its current form. The bill and explanatory memorandums can be viewed here: https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au//human-tissue-amendment
06.01.2022 Today at 7pm we'll be live discussing last week and next week in Parliament, including the upcoming State of Emergency Extension Bill, and answering your questions.
05.01.2022 Make sure you tune in to Paul Murray LIVE tonight. See you there!
04.01.2022 Yesterday in Parliament, I urged the Minister for the Environment to ensure that Mt Arapiles will not be subject to set-aside orders and will remain open for the rock climbing community to use. Rock climbing is an integral part of the local community there and the last thing we need at the moment is more unnecessary economic disruption.
04.01.2022 Was great to appear on the final Young IPA podcast where I received an award for Freedom Hero of the Year! I talked about what has happened throughout the year as well as some positive thoughts for the future in Victoria. Please watch and share!
03.01.2022 Edit : wow you guys are fast! Thanks. We have more than enough images now. Thanks for your help! I’m not going to let them give water rations from a bucket like we are animals in a pen and get away with it. *** Special request *** If anyone has photos of the steel buckets the police used to distribute water yesterday at the protest, can they please either post them here or message me? ... Thank you!
03.01.2022 I appeared on Paul Murray Live last night where he asked me about what has been happening with the Omnibus bill due to be debated next week.
03.01.2022 I think I’m now the only politician who has witnessed first hand both the BLM protest back in June and the anti lockdown protest today. Were they treated differently? Absolutely yes. Shocking. Police forced us all into crowded spaces where social distancing was impossible. They wouldn’t allow anyone to leave and took everyone away one by one to process, including me and one of my staff. We were held like herded cattle for hours. I witnessed young women break down with pan...ic attacks and an old man get treated heavy handed because he wanted to go to the toilet. When we asked for water, they found a bucket and dipped cups in it and handed them out. Gross. I made multiple attempts to engage with police to ask questions about what was happening but they refused to talk or allow anyone to leave unless it was a medical emergency. The right to freedom of assembly does not currently exist in this state.
03.01.2022 I delivered a members statement yesterday urging the Government to ensure that small businesses are given every opportunity to recover and make common sense exceptions to rules where appropriate.
02.01.2022 When the Government closes borders, it causes harm. A supporter sent me this story of their personal experience. Published anonymously with permission. Thank you for sharing. ... Dear David, I was forced to leave NSW because of the border closure and I thought you might like to hear about the experience. I was working in NSW on NYE. When I got back to where I was staying, I heard that the border was closing and I needed to get out that night to avoid forced self isolation. I was too tired to leave then, but ended up leaving very early on New Year's Day. I hadn't slept much, I felt very stressed. When I got to the border there were only a few cars in front of me, the police said it was lucky that I hadn't come the night before because there was a delay of 6.5 hours. They were very helpful and did the permit application for me. They were clearly unhappy about the situation. I was traumatised at having to come home and go back into solitary confinement where I have been for much of last year. I got the impression that I wasn't the only traumatised person driving through the checkpoint. Many people were driving quite badly, I only realised later that some of them had probably been driving for much of the night. I spoke to people who had only arrived in NSW the previous day and were forced to do that long drive again the next day. The cafes were overwhelmed and there were long waits for food and coffee - I ended up driving to Bairnsdale before I managed to get a coffee without a 45 minute wait. Some people sat in that border queue for much of the night with children etc. What the government did was dangerous - it put people's lives at risk. The response to increased cases in Sydney was hysterical and irresponsible. Most of us were staying in "green zones" with zero cases. People needed much more notice to be able to leave in a safe and sensible manner. These border closures need to stop. We are one country, it's one thing to put restrictions on areas with outbreaks, but to keep closing borders is breaking people and the economy.
01.01.2022 Watch this video to see my speech on why I still oppose the Omnibus Bill.
