The Victorian health department has acknowledged the distress caused to a family who were required to have their children tested twice for sexually transmitted infections after attending a childcare center where accused paedophile Joshua Dale Brown worked.
This issue has arisen as the state premier, Jacinta Allan, defends the appointment of Jay Weatherill to lead a review into childcare safety in Victoria, accusing the opposition of “playing politics.”
Brown was charged in May with over 70 child abuse offenses involving eight alleged victims aged between five months and two years. However, the case only came to public attention on Tuesday when a court suppression order was lifted.
The alleged offenses took place while Brown was employed at a childcare center in Melbourne’s western suburbs, with police also investigating similar allegations at a second center in the city’s northern suburbs.
Authorities have released a list of 20 childcare centers where Brown worked between January 2017 and May 2025, along with his employment dates. As a result, about 2,600 families are being contacted and 1,200 children have been advised to undergo infectious disease screening.
There has been confusion regarding the screening tests required for children, with conflicting information being provided to parents through text messages. Initially, parents were advised to test their children for gonorrhoea and chlamydia, and two days later, a follow-up message added syphilis to the list.
The health department has acknowledged the distress caused to the family over the conflicting information and has expressed regret for the additional stress and anxiety experienced by the family.
Allan has stated that the website listing the childcare centers involved would be constantly updated and that the situation has highlighted the need for a Victorian register of childcare workers, which the government is currently working on.
The opposition leader, Brad Battin, has expressed disappointment in the government’s appointment of a “Labor ally” to lead the review, describing it as an “insider-led process designed to protect the government.” However, Allan believes Weatherill is the best person to lead the review, as he has the necessary knowledge and understanding of the system’s vulnerabilities.
Allan has also accused the opposition of being reckless and “playing politics,” arguing that their demand for earlier government action would have breached the suppression order and jeopardized the police investigation and the pursuit of justice.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/jul/04/health-department-children-sti-tests-accused-melbourne-childcare-paedophile-jacinta-allan-ntwnfb
