Ms Sheed has demanded parliament should resume sitting as soon as possible rather than the government's set date of August 4 to ensure she can give answers to the Shepparton community about what life will look like post COVID-19.
“Shutting down parliament during a one-in-a-hundred-year disaster not only sends a terrible message to the community, but robs members of their ability to communicate directly with the cabinet during this critical time,” Ms Sheed said.
She said it was vital the Victorian Parliament continue sitting to allow members to bring their concerns and needs of their constituents to the government on issues such as what would happen when JobKeeper and JobSeeker ended in the coming months.
“Our communities have been plunged into the worst crisis they have ever experienced, and that has had an amazing impact . . . there are a lot of other people in the community who are desperate to keep going . . . they need their businesses to open, they need to re-employ people.
“Everyone has that fear of JobKeeper and JobSeeker finishing in a few months’ time.
“They have been incredible buffers to the reality of this absolute crisis and pandemic that we are in at the moment.”
Ms Sheed said members of parliament were privileged to be employed and should get on with their job at such a critical time.
“For us to now leave this place and not come back until August, to stick to a timetable that was set in different times is to me a failure on all of us.
“I think the community expects us to be in this place and to be not only seen to be working hard but to actually be working hard, because nobody else is taking holidays.”
Ms Sheed also said holding the government to account would be harder if they didn't sit again until August.
In the upper house, Wendy Lovell criticised her three fellow Northern Victoria MPs for voting with the government.
Ms Lovell said it was an utter disgrace and Premier Daniel Andrews was avoiding public scrutiny on the back of the recent branch stacking scandal.
“While I commend Suzanna Sheed and Ali Cupper (Member for Mildura) for voting with the Liberal Party to return parliament in two weeks’ time, Northern Victoria members Jaclyn Symes, Mark Gepp and Tania Maxwell should hang their heads in shame for supporting the government with this decision,” she said.
“Their collective actions are a slap in the face to the constituents they claim to represent.”
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