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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Benita Kolovos Victorian state correspondent

Moira Deeming criticised for describing police as Daniel Andrews’ ‘personal army’ in statue debate amid manhunt for alleged killer of two officers

Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming
Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming told state parliament during a debate over a statue that former premier Daniel Andrews used police as ‘a personal army with weapons of war and no name tags’ during the pandemic. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

Victorian Liberal MPs Moira Deeming and Ann-Marie Hermans have been criticised for comparing Daniel Andrews to a dictator amid a manhunt for a so-called “sovereign citizen” who allegedly killed two police officers, with Deeming also accusing the former premier of using police as his “personal army” during Covid lockdowns.

Deeming on Wednesday night debated in parliament a petition she had sponsored opposing erecting a statue of Andrews. Passing the milestone of 3,000 days as premier made him eligible for one, but the Allan government has maintained it has no immediate plans to act on it.

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