Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull, has written to the government seeking a review of the COVID-19 exercise and recreation restrictions.

“Over the past fortnight I have been contacted by many constituents in relation to what they describe as conflicting advice and ambiguous interpretations and seeking clarity,” said Mr Bull.

“We all need to work together on this and get the balance right for our communities.

“This is not a criticism of the decision makers, they have had to make tough calls in a difficult time. It is about a timely review of the measures, to see if what we have is the best fit and how our restrictions compare with other states.”

Mr Bull said he believed people generally were very keen to do the right thing and are not looking for loopholes.

“Some examples of areas where I believe a review of measures should be considered are golf and fishing.

“Both are important pastimes that greatly assist the mental health of people and large numbers have contacted my office on this. I have had many say this is how they clear the mind and keep on top of their mental health challenges.

“These activities are permitted in every other state and territory of Australia under restriction (including numbers, local area, social distancing rules, etc) and I believe should be reviewed in Victoria.

“All other states have deemed them important for mental health and recreation reasons, so we should weigh that up.”

Mr Bull said it was hard to explain why tennis is OK, but golf is not.

“Boating, kayaking and paddle boarding are other examples. They are also allowed in every other state and territory under restriction (numbers, local area, social distancing). It is difficult to justify how surfing is allowed, but paddle boarding and kayaking are not. What is the reasoning and can it be reconsidered? 

“Hunting is another area where different guidelines exist across the jurisdictions, so let’s try and get some uniformity here as well and have a discussion on the Coronavirus risks of all these activities and whether they should be allowed in our local area by assessing the seemingly low risk against the psychological benefits.

“I assume many of these measures were put in place to remove the temptation of Easter travel and I support both the State and Federal Governments’ approach in relation to the strong messaging around Easter travel, but with Easter now past, we should be assessing the measures that are in place in other states and territories and their effectiveness.”

“Similarly, if measures are to remain in place, let’s provide the community with the reasoning behind the determinations and why they differ in Victoria, so the community can understand the rationale,” he said.

Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull, has written to the government seeking a review of some of the COVID-19 exercise and recreation restrictions.