Melissa Price (Durack, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to speak on this matter of public importance and to help smash the myths perpetuated by those on the other side. We on this side have got a lot to say, especially about health care in the bush. We on this side continue to be on the moral high ground when it comes to health, with the Turnbull government increasing funding to WA hospitals by 27 per cent over the next four years. This is an increase of $469 million, a mammoth increase by anyone's judgement. In my patch, rural, regional and remote areas received about one-third of the total Medicare Benefits Schedule benefits paid across all of Australia in 2014-15. So it is unfathomable why those sitting opposite try to attack this government on health. One would think they had nothing better to do with their time.

In the 2015 budget, the government increased funding to a number of health initiatives and services. The government boosted funding to the Royal Flying Doctor Service to the tune of $20 million over the next two years. This brings funding across the forward estimates to over $137 million, which is a huge boost to my electorate of Durack and regional Australia. We announced the redesign of the General Practice Rural Incentives Program to better support delivery of medical services in rural and remote communities. We are also creating a new Health Workforce Scholarship Program, including rural return-of-service obligations to boost the rural workforce. We also announced new and amended MBS listings to assist rural and remote Australia. A couple of examples are new MBS items for targeted interactive radiotherapy for early-stage breast cancer and for remote monitoring of patients with implanted cardiac devices, which will eliminate travel for routine matters. These commitments build on the 2014 budget commitments, which include $40 million over four years to create more inter training opportunities in private hospitals in rural and regional areas and over $52 million for infrastructure grants to support the teaching and supervision of the rural and regional medical workforce. Since I was elected as the member for Durack just over two years ago, the government have announced a number of health initiatives in my area alone. I am particularly proud of the new cancer centre which will open in Geraldton in the near future and the headspace which is coming to Geraldton—and I am currently talking with key stakeholders in the Pilbara to get one in that region as well.

It is Labor's 'year of the big idea'. This is the best they have got today. One would say that is a bit of a joke. I would say it is more of a year of negativity. Talking of Labor ideas, I noticed with sheer horror—yes, horror—the recent Labor announcement of a proposed $10 billion in infrastructure projects. I noted that these were all in cities. None were in regional Australia, so Durack would miss out should we have those opposite holding onto the reins. It is yet another example of how those on the other side do not know what the needs of rural and regional Australia are and, if they did, they would not care about them. They illustrated that with that announcement.

I note the latest—not so scary—scare campaign, about a 15 per cent GST, that Labor have been trying to execute, unconvincingly. As our Prime Minister has said ad nauseam, any change to the tax system must be fair, and any increased burden will be borne by those best able to pay for it. The future prosperity of Australia is not just about reforming one type of tax or taxes, full stop. What we require is a review of the whole range of taxes, including company tax, and to acknowledge and do something about bracket creep. These are the things we need to talk about. But we on this side are up to the job. You know what else we are up to—we are up to looking after the health sector, because it is in very safe hands.

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