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

For the benefit of those who are interjecting, you might want to remind yourselves by going back and having a look at the previous shadow minister’s comments and the previous health minister’s comments quite denying that a binge-drinking problem even exists. I know why you guys do not like this—because you voted against it. But unfortunately that is all on the record. It is there.

There is only one of those opposite who has come to see me about this issue and has taken an interest, because he has at a local level been very heavily involved in promoting anti-binge-drinking strategies. I see he is sitting in the House today, but I will not embarrass him by naming him. I am sorry if, when the Liberal Party’s position is clearly described by us, it causes some offence to those opposite who have taken a personal interest in this in their electorate.

The official position of the Liberal Party is what we will happily attack. If the new shadow minister is really interested in binge drinking, then have this measure passed and make sure that investments that the government has now committed to—and more that we want to commit to—are able to be supported by this measure. It is a very easy option to follow.

I do not fully understand the shadow minister’s comments—but I am happy to take it on notice to re-read them—but he seems to be implying that the revisions downward reflect something untoward. What they clearly reflect, which is not in dispute, is that consumption of these products has reduced. What is very difficult to be able to tell—and I agree with this—is who is consuming less, because these products are not legal for teenagers to buy. We know other people must be buying those products for them. It is very difficult for us in a short time frame to be able to identify those trends. The shadow minister would be aware that the household surveys and others have a very long lag time. So I am not standing here pretending to the House that we have a lot of the answers to some of the questions that the shadow minister has raised. What we do have is very clear evidence of a significant reduction in alcopop sales, and that means people who are consuming them are consuming less.

The shadow minister also asked some questions about hospitalisations, even though he is on the record today and in the media as acknowledging that the data that has been released by Access Economics really does not allow a conclusion to be drawn in either direction. He also said the jury is still out on whether these measures are having an impact on young people. I am happy to assure the minister that the advice that we have received is that, if this measure is not passed, the money must be returned to the distillers.

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