David Gillespie (Lyne, National Party, Assistant Minister for Rural Health) Share this | Hansard source

One thing that people get really cynical and angry about is when their leaders mislead them. And what have we seen in this last election campaign? The very misleading Mediscare tactics of sending texts out days before the election, telling people that the coalition government is going to privatise Medicare. Nothing is further from the truth—take a snippet of information about IT support and turn it into a massive great scare campaign.

Another failed scare campaign is the so-called $57 billion cuts out of hospital funding. In the campaign—and before that in the last COAG deal—the opposition had to withdraw that. In the last COAG agreement, there was another $2.9 billion for hospitals. So in fact, with regard to the member for Franklin's quite emotional speech there about the situation in Tasmania, since 2013-14 there has been a 29½ per cent increase in hospital spending.

I know why they have brought this out. Whenever things are going badly there, they wheel out the regular emotional argument. I know they have problems in the Senate, with senators that have caught the attention of the Australian public. Whether they are doing it for that reason alone or because they are bereft of other positive ideas, this whole MPI is suggesting that there are cuts. The total spending on health in the last term of the previous Labor government—I can tell you; I looked it up—was $61.9 billion in the 2012-13 budget. Then in 2013-14 it was $64½ billion, and the next year $67 billion, and the next year $69.1 billion, and in the last budget the total health spend was $71.4 billion. In the Medicare spending there have been 17 million more bulk-billing episodes—$23 billion per year, and $4 billion over the next four years. When you are going to discuss cuts, you actually have to have the figures to back it up, not an emotional argument. It is the old chestnut of the ALP's argument: they have an emotional argument rather than a factual one, and people get very cynical when you actually point out the facts and figures.

Here are a few other facts. I have mentioned hospital spending, but on pharmaceutical benefits, in the last term of the coalition government and just after, there has been another $4½ billion worth of drugs put onto the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, whether it is drugs for ovarian cancer, the diabetes drugs that were just announced, hepatitis C drugs, or melanoma and other cancer drugs. That is $4½ billion. In primary care and mental health, there is an extra $1½ billion. So the facts and figures just do not add up.

We have a lot of rural health initiatives. We have a commitment to developing and delivering an integrated rural training program and appointing a rural health commissioner. Courtesy of your advocacy, Mr Deputy Speaker, we have a cancer centre being delivered in Dubbo. Instead of hundreds or thousands of people travelling hundreds of kilometres, they will be getting first-class cancer care in Dubbo. I congratulate you on your efforts there, Mr Deputy Speaker. We have committed $11 million extra to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. All of this is focused on delivering rural, regional and remote care.

As I mentioned, we have a good track record on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. In aged care we have got extra funding. Most recently we have announced Health Care Homes, an initiative for people with chronic diseases. It will mean that care for people with complex, multifaceted illnesses will be focused in one place rather than being disparate and disjointed. It is an initiative that was actually proposed during the period of the previous Labor government, but they did not even follow their own advice. It is a great initiative and great that it is actually coming to fruition. (Time expired)

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