Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Health) Share this | Hansard source

We will ask our range of questions. I am going to ask you each time to answer them. If the minister wants to stand up each time and say that he is not going to answer them that is entirely up to the minister. The next range of questions—that, obviously, the minister is also not going to answer in any way—go to the dental package. The minister would no doubt be aware that in the announcement of the dental package it was estimated that 200,000 people would be able to be covered by this—a staggering figure given that only a handful of people have been covered to date by the existing program and given that the government does not know and has not yet been prepared to tell us what the rebates will be, what the out-of-pocket costs will be or whether or not the referral process will be reformed. I would like the minister to advise how that figure of 200,000 was worked out. What estimate is it based on, given that there is no estimation of what the rebates will be and there is no information as yet of what procedures are actually going to be covered? Minister, if you could tell me how that figure of 200,000 people was achieved I would be grateful.

Obviously, the minister is not prepared to answer these questions. I am absolutely sure that the reason that this decision has been taken is that there are not any answers. The minister, after the questions have been asked, will provide some sort of excuse for an answer but does not want to have any follow-up. He does not want the parliamentary process to actually work in the way that it is intended to work. He does not want to provide any information, obviously making a joke of the parliament and this process. It is very frustrating for the opposition and does not achieve anything for the government. It shows that they are not prepared to engage.

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