Pocock supports inquiry into why more Australians are dying than usual

In what the anti-vaccine senator claims "appears to be a world-first inquiry for what is a global issue", the Coalition, One Nation, Lidia Thorpe supported a Babet motion co-sponsored by Senator Pocock and senator Jacqui Lambie. The vote was 31-to-30.

In a statement, Senator Babet said Australians have been dying in excess numbers without adequate explanation for the past few years.

"In 2022 we experienced our highest excess death rate since World War Two," he said. "The ABS provisional mortality statistics released last month confirm that to November 2023 there were 15,114 or 10 per cent more deaths than the baseline average."

Senator Pocock said he is acting on the concern of public health experts, and he amended the inquiry's terms of reference with Senator Lambie.

"While I don't think there is evidence to support conspiracy theories that have circulated for some time now, there's no harm in looking at what other potential drivers might be behind this data," he said.

"I don't accept the conspiracy theories that have featured so heavily in the discourse around COVID-19 and vaccines, however, I do acknowledge there is data showing excess mortality rates have increased in recent years."

He said there are potential non-vaccine reasons for the higher than normal death rates.

"We know for instance that many people delayed seeing a doctor during COVID leading to later stage cancer diagnoses and higher mortality rates," the senator said.

"Disturbingly, alcohol-related deaths have also been climbing for four consecutive years in a row."

Neither the Albanese government nor the Greens voted for the inquiry, however, the community affairs references committee is chaired by Greens senator Janet Rice and while Labor's Marielle Smith is the deputy chair.

"I'd like to thank Senator Pocock and Senator Lambie for co-sponsoring the motion as well as One Nation, Senator Thorpe, Senator Tyrrell and the Coalition for voting in favour," Senator Babet said in a statement.

"So much for the transparency promised by the Albanese Labor government.

"May this committee process give a voice to the family members of the deceased and deliver the answers that our nation so desperately needs."

It is the fifth time Senator Babet has tried to get up such an inquiry. In February, he got the Senate to acknowledge the "concerning number of excess deaths observed in Australia in 2021 and 2022 has continued into 2023 as evidenced by all-cause provisional mortality data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics."

The committee is due to report back by August 31.