The federal government has expanded the scope of its COVID-19 inquiry after it received criticism for excluding the decisions of state leaders.
The inquiry’s website now reveals it will consider the evidence used to justify restrictions like lockdowns, school shutdowns and curfews.
Former NSW premier Dominic Perrottet has volunteered to give evidence towards state decisions while only one premier who oversaw the pandemic, Queensland’s Annastacia Palaszczuk, remains in office.
While the panel is not expected to investigate individual state decisions, there will now be some assessment of whether these decisions were made using sufficient evidence.
Submissions to the inquiry opened on Monday.
