Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I do not accept the premise of the question. What I said was absolutely right. I refer the shadow minister to this outstanding booklet, the budget for 2014 on health, which says:

Patient contributions will not be expected for many GP services that target patients with particular health needs, such as Health Assessments and Chronic Disease Management items.

I know that he does not read a lot, but if he read this document he would see that what I said the other day was absolutely right. As the Prime Minister said, there is a great deal of hypocrisy about this line from the Labor Party.

Bob Hawke was a real leader of the Labor Party. He had principles. He actually delivered a surplus, the last Labor surplus. Bob Hawke is a man of principle. He is a man that calls it as he sees it, and he said back in 1991 that he wanted to introduce a co-payment of $3.50 for each visit to the doctor and he was doing so because at that time the average number of visits to the doctor was about four per year. Now it is about 11 per year according to the Commission of Audit. The bottom line is that Labor thinks that this is a free ride.

Mr Shorten interjecting—

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