Chief Health Offficer and the Human Rights Act - a request for information

Chief Health Officer,

GPO Box 48

Brisbane,

Queensland 4001

Dear Doctor

I write to you on behalf of the executive of the Council concerning your compliance with the Human Rights Act (“the Act”).

As you no doubt appreciate, you are a “public entity” within the meaning of that Act.

Therefore, you are required by section 58 (1) (b) of the Act to give proper consideration to human rights relevant to your decisions.

That provision of course applies to the making of the health directions relating to Covid.

We assume therefore that in making each of those directions, you have conducted an analysis which demonstrates that you have given proper consideration to all relevant human rights in preparing the directions.

It seems to us, that any such document is the quintessential public document. It is our view that it ought to be released in accordance with your department’s publications scheme.

Accordingly, I write to you on behalf of the Council to ask that you provide us with and publish on your website a copy of the analysis that you have prepared in accordance with section 58 (1) (b) for every health direction that you have issued under section 362B of the Public Health Act.

We look forward to your reply