Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

A state Labor management style has been imposed on us. The health minister indicates that that is a bit low; we need to see how low the health standards drop under this federal government before we can definitively say whether the health minister is accurate or not. We know that health has been disastrous under the Labor governments in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Northern Territory, the ACT and South Australia. Right around the country, Labor has run the health system into the ground, and this federal government is on the same path as well.

The first Reba Meagher-style announcement of this health minister was in relation to private health. Reba Roxon said that 500,000 people should be forced out of private health and into the public hospital system. The health minister claims that forcing 500,000 people out of private health and pushing them into the public health system, a system which Labor have already crippled, is somehow going to deliver better health outcomes for the Australian people. We cannot stand by—the Australian people cannot stand by—and tolerate a further deterioration of this health system, which is what will happen if the federal government continues down this track.

When you look at the figures you will see they are quite amazing. For the change that the government proposed to the Medicare levy surcharge, their first figures indicated that 485,000 people would drop their private health insurance. This withstood scrutiny for about 24 hours. The government finally realised and admitted to their mistake that 485,000 did not include children or dependants, and the figures shot up to 644,000. Don’t people with children and dependants get services in the public system in this country? Is that where Labor thinks we should be? It is such a ridiculous position to be in, and an embarrassing one for the Minister for Health and Ageing.

This ended up with the government’s compromise to 500,000 people—including, I might say to their credit, dependants and children—who will now be forced off private health and pushed into the public health system as a result of Labor style management of health. Public health deserves much greater support than it is getting from the government, and this coalition opposition will not stand by while we have some sort of rewrite of history. We will make sure that we continue to call this government to account. They should stand condemned for the way in which the Acting Prime Minister walked away from their election commitment today. As a coalition, we will make sure that we keep the pressure on the states and territories and this government to make sure that the public health system in this country turns around, because we are committed not just to a public health system but also to a private one. We are the only side of this parliament capable of delivering positive health outcomes. The figures from when we were in government demonstrate that, and we will show it when we are returned at the next election.

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