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

The Health portfolio, I am sorry to say, was no exception by any stretch of the imagination. People who live in New South Wales or Queensland in particular know that Labor wreck the health system. They put money into bureaucracies—they take it away from patients and doctors and front-line services and they put it into health bureaucracies. That is what Labor do, and why do they do it? They do it because that is what pleases the union bosses. The union bosses are pleased with that sort of activity because it houses all sorts of former secretaries and workers within the union otherwise. That is why patients suffer.

Opposition members interjecting—

All of the declarations of indignation do not go anywhere. They protected the Health Services Union. They funnelled money into these dodgy causes and they took money away from the front line. They are shameful when it comes to the waste of taxpayers' money, and in the health space it is no different. When we came into government—

Ms Plibersek interjecting—

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