Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

I remind the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the question about the visiting of the Pacific Islands since his appointment. I also ask why he has only travelled to three of the 10 ASEAN countries since the election.

I began some questions on PNG health and would like to finish those. In the 2011-12 portfolio budget statement the government listed health services in PNG as a priority area for development. I asked a series of questions about the closing down of the tuberculosis clinics, so I ask the foreign affairs minister to answer those questions. Is it correct that the Queensland government is seeking an additional $15 million to continue to treat sick PNG nationals? If so, when did the Queensland government first raise with this government its need for additional funding for that purpose? Is the foreign affairs minister aware that the Queensland Nurses Union wrote to the Minister for Health and Ageing in February 2009 with their concerns about a lack of clarity as to whether the federal government intended to increase funding to Queensland Health in order to meet the needs of PNG nationals? If that is in fact the case, why has no decision been taken by the government after such a long time on what is an extremely crucial issue? Would the minister explain why the government is seemingly refusing an additional $15 million to help PNG nationals seeking medical assistance yet the minister was able to use his discretion to commit an extra $140 million to the Global Alliance on Vaccines and Immunisation.

It has also been reported that officials from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship are under pressure to turn away PNG nationals who arrive on the islands in need of medical assistance. Is the foreign affairs minister aware of that? Is the minister able to advise how many PNG nationals have been turned away for that reason? Has the minister received any representation, or is he aware that the government or the department has received any representation, from the PNG government about this decision to refuse access to medical treatment for PNG nationals?

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