A WESTERN Victoria MP has defended her decision to attend Victorian Parliament this week in defiance of Chief Health Officer advice during a declared state of disaster.
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Victoria's upper house sat on Tuesday with Liberal opposition MP Bev McArthur attending Parliament but not sitting in the chamber due to reduced sitting numbers.
Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton had asked the speaker on Monday "to consider delaying the return of the Victorian Parliament" and advised MPs and staff "who live outside metropolitan Melbourne should not attend the Parliament in person".
Ms McArthur said she attended at the direction of her party because "democracy is vitally important" and believed Mr Sutton's advice was "propaganda".
"That was purely a means by which the government could argue they didn't have to face the people," she said.
"Everybody has to travel in and out of Melbourne, there is food deliveries, there are workers coming and going quite rightly all the time, there is no more safer place than the Parliament of Victoria."
Ms McArthur also brushed off suggestions that delaying a sitting in Parliament was an opportunity to lead by example.
"The only time we can question the government is in the chamber of the house," she said. "If this Parliament got its act together we could have some kind of virtual parliament."
Opposition MPs asked questions of Health Minister Jenny Mikakos including on hotel quarantine, but she refused to answer in the chamber, instead offering a written response the next day.
Ms McArthur said providing a written response was "totally unacceptable"
"The minister in the legislative council demonstrated a complete level of arrogance," she said.
Labor Western Victoria MPs Jaala Pulford and Gayle Tierney remained in the electorate on Tuesday, their spokespeople said.