Prime Minister Scott Morrison will not be tested for the COVID-19 coronavirus despite spending time in close contact with now-positive Minister of Home Affairs Peter Dutton in the days prior to his diagnosis.
Yes, you read that correctly. The leader of our country, who has been in direct contact with a positive coronavirus case, is NOT getting tested or self-isolating.
The Morrison government has shut down rumours that 20 senior members of the federal government were self-isolating following Dutton’s diagnosis after he attended a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
Dutton also attended a National Security Committee meeting on Thursday, however he appeared via video link and posed no threat to others.
“In advice provided to the prime minister this evening, the deputy Chief Medical Officer has reiterated that only people who had close contact with the minister in the preceding 24 hours before he became symptomatic need to self-isolate,” Mr Morrison’s office said, according to SMH. “That does not include the prime minister or any other members of the cabinet.”
Peter Dutton is the first member of the Australian government to test positive to the COVID-19 coronavirus, announcing his diagnosis on Friday night.
Despite the fact that he isn’t being tested for the COVID-19 coronavirus, Scott Morrison has since announced that he won’t be attending his “beloved” Cronulla Sharks NRL game this weekend. Honestly, this is quite possibly the smartest decision the leader of our nation has ever made.
“After further consideration and the potential for the prime minister’s attendance to be misrepresented, the prime minister has chosen not to attend the match this weekend,” a spokesperson for Scott Morrison said.
“The prime minister believes this would avoid any unnecessary confusion about his attendance.”
The news comes after photos emerged of Dutton in close proximity to high-profile US figures like Ivanka Trump in recent days, prompting Twitter users to speculate who he could’ve given the virus to.
The Morrison government asserts that there is no need for self-isolation, but to put it simply, Scott Morrison has been in close contact with a positive COVID-19 case, and has since been in close contact with a plethora our state and federal leaders.
It doesn’t take a medical professional to realise that maybe we should isolate the potentially-infected politicians in office before they risk spreading coronavirus throughout our entire system of government.
