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Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan is facing renewed scrutiny over her role in the state’s harsh COVID-19 curfews, after internal emails revealed the restrictions were not based on health advice as previously claimed.

🚨Bombshell documents reveal Covid curfew was NOT based on health advice

Imagine my shock pic.twitter.com/Vxu7YB7zKg

— Avi Yemini (@OzraeliAvi) April 21, 2025

The emails, obtained by Liberal MP David Davis under a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, show the decision to impose Melbourne’s nightly curfew in 2020 was shockingly made before any consultation with health officials.

“It was not based on ‘health advice’ but was announced by Andrews peremptorily,” Davis said. “The detailed exchange was very late in the day, just over two hours before the curfew was due to come into effect at 8pm… shows it was not conceived by health officials.”

The email chain, dated August 2, 2020, includes a message from Deputy Chief Health Officer Finn Romanes to Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton sent just after 5pm — two and a half hours after then-premier Daniel Andrews announced the curfew.

“The idea of a curfew has not arisen from public health advice in the first instance,” Romanes wrote. “The action of issuing a curfew is a mirror to the State of Disaster and is not occurring on public health advice but is a decision taken by Cabinet and announced today, as an important step in the response.”

Watch power mad Dan Andrews dismissing human rights concerns during COVID for the curfew he imposed - with the full knowledge it was implemented without health or police advice. pic.twitter.com/nZhwZlag02

— Nathan Livingstone (MilkBarTV) (@TheMilkBarTV) April 21, 2025

Sutton replied half an hour later, stating, “Your assessment is correct as I understand it,” and adding, “There appears to be merit in it limiting opportunities for transmission, perhaps especially in high risk cohorts.”

Davis said the government spent four years and seven months fighting the release of the emails through the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal and the Court of Appeal. “Now we can all see why the Andrews and Allan Labor Government wanted to cover up the embarrassing facts behind the curfew decision,” he said.

🚨BOMBSHELL document kept secret until now reveals during COVID, Victoria's Public Health Commander was not consulted before then Vic Premier Dan Andrews imposed a curfew that made it illegal for Victorians to leave their homes between 8pm - 5am.

Victoria's Public Health… pic.twitter.com/HmtA122HtQ

— Nathan Livingstone (MilkBarTV) (@TheMilkBarTV) April 19, 2025

A spokesperson for Allan responded, saying the government “did what was needed to protect Victorians” and that “every public health order – including this one – had to be made by the Chief Health Officer or an authorised officer.”

Victoria’s next state election is due in November 2026.