Aboriginal leader Dr Robert Isaacs says Attorney-General John Quigley flouted COVID-19 rules

Attorney-General John Quigley, the state’s chief law officer, has been accused by one of WA’s most respected Aboriginal leaders of blatantly flouting COVID rules by failing to wear a mask while attending at a funeral service inside a Broome cathedral. Dr Robert Isaacs — an Order of Australia medal recipient and 2016 West Australian of the Year — told The West it was a disgraceful Mr Quigley did not wear a mask at while attending a high-profile Broome funeral last week, which was attended by many vulnerable older Indigenous people. The Whadjuk-Bibilmum Wardandi Noongar elder said the Attorney-General had even shaken his hand at the Our Lady Queen of Peace Cathedral while maskless. Dr Isaacs said Mr Quigley’s actions smacked of hypocrisy after the government approved the decision of police to recently interrupt Mass at a Catholic church in Perth to conduct mandatory mask checks. “For the State Government to support church services being interrupted but have their own Ministers not follow the law is disgraceful,” he said. Under the state government’s strict COVID laws anyone who has been in the Perth, Peel, Whealtbelt or Great Southern regions and travels to regions such as the Kimberley is required to wear a mask in indoor settings for two weeks after arrival. Mr Quigley travelled from Perth to act as one of the pallbearers at the funeral. “There were a lot of older people and Indigenous people at the service, all of whom are considered high risk but John thought he’d just come in without a mask and put everyone at risk, it’s appalling,” Dr Isaacs said. “He came up and spoke to me and my wife, shook our hands, all while not wearing a mask.” North West Central MLA Vince Catania said he had received multiple complaints about Mr Quigley’s failure to don a mask. “We hear all this tough talk about mandates. When the Attorney General was up in the Kimberley, everyone complained because he attended a funeral without wearing a mask,” he told Parliament on Wednesday. “How does that work? Ministers are not following the mandates imposed by the government.” A spokesperson from Mr Quigley’s office did not directly deny or confirm the allegations. “The Attorney General attended a funeral for a relative, where he was asked to be a pallbearer,” they said. “The Attorney General has no recollection of what you have described. “Mask wearing is not mandatory outdoors and public health rules allow for a person to remove their mask in an indoor public space in certain circumstances, for example to consume food or have a drink.” Last year Mr Quigley was heavily criticised for failing to disclose accepting the gift of a helicopter ride from businessman and former Crown Perth director John Poynton to a Yallingup party. That was despite Mr Poynton being a key witness at a series of judicial inquiries into Crown’s casino business — including a NSW probe which uncovered evidence criminals used a shell company set up by Crown Perth to launder money. Mr Quigley later set up WA’s Royal Commission into Crown Perth. By the time of December’s chopper ride, Mr Poynton had given evidence to a NSW inquiry into the suitability of Crown to hold a Sydney casino licence. Mr Poynton was not criticised in the Bergin report but the NSW casino regulator put immense pressure on the businessman to resign which he eventually did two weeks after a WA inquiry was announced.