The Supreme Court of Queensland has ruled that COVID-19 vaccine mandates imposed by the state government on police officers and ambulance service workers during the pandemic were unlawful under the state’s own human rights laws.
On Feb. 27, the Supreme Court issued rulings on several lawsuits filed by dozens of individuals against the Queensland Police Service (QPS) and Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) over their compulsory vaccine requirements for employees between 2021 and 2022.
During that period, police officers and emergency service workers were required to take COVID-19 vaccines and booster shots or be subject to disciplinary actions from their employers, including being stood down from their positions or getting fired.
The court found that Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll failed to consider staff’s human rights when making decisions in relation to the vaccine mandates.
At the same time, it found that former Department of Health Director-General Dr. John Wakefield was unable to provide evidence that QAS’s vaccine mandates fell under the terms of employment contracts of ambulance service workers.
While the judges believed the mandates imposed by the two agencies were reasonable given the emergency situation of the pandemic, they found that the directions breached the Human Rights Act 2019 (Qld) as workers were forced to go through medical procedures without full consent.
As such, the court ruled that the vaccine mandates were unlawful and had no effect.
“As each direction has been revoked, the remedies available are confined.”
Nevertheless, the judge acknowledged that it was a challenge for the two government agencies to balance the need to prevent their employees from contracting the disease and uphold human rights during the pandemic.
“The balance between the importance of the purpose of the limitation, and the importance of preserving the human right ... is complicated by the fact that these directions were given in what was, by any measure, an emergency,” he said.
Senator Says Royal Commission Into Pandemic Needed
Following the Queensland Supreme Court’s decision, One Nation Senator Pauline Hanson said there was an urgent need for a Royal Commission into the pandemic.“From the very beginning, I always maintained the mandates were unlawful and unconstitutional,” she said in a statement.
“Only a Royal Commission would have the necessary coercive power to compel the secret advice that led to these unlawful mandates in Queensland.”
During the 2022 election, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese pledged to establish a COVID-19 Royal Commission to investigate the responses of government during the pandemic.
Former Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr. Nick Coatsworth at the time questioned the decision, calling it “concerning.”
Meanwhile, Nationals Senator Matt Canavan said the court rulings were long overdue.
“Our hardworking health workers and police never should have been forced to have these vaccines to start with. It’s left QLD short of health staff all across the state,” he told The Epoch Times.
“These workers should have the opportunity to go back to work and [receive] compensation for the unnecessary heartache and stress that was put on them and their families.”
