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

The honourable member makes mention of the budget. In this budget we increase spending in health in each of the years in the forward estimates. We increase health spending and hospital spending. Hospital spending goes up by nine per cent next year, the year after and the year after that, and then 6½ per cent in the year after that. We have provided a lot of support to front-line services in this budget and we are very proud of it.

The Labor Party presided over this great mushrooming of bureaucracies within the Health portfolio over the course of their six years. We want to make sure that we can get money back to doctors and nurses and deliverers of health services so that we can get more patients seen. That is the desire of this government and that is what we achieve.

Ms King interjecting—

Mr Bowen interjecting—

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