Susan Lamb (Longman, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this issue and I commend the member for Hindmarsh for moving this motion. I'm incredibly proud to stand in the House and represent the people of my electorate, many of whom are transitioning from their homes into aged care and many of whom want to stay in their homes as long as they possibly can. But even more proudly do I stand in this House as a member of the Labor Party. I'm really proud of our history of reforms to make life better for people who helped build this country as they move out of their working lives into retirement and beyond. You can't deny the great work performed by Labor in crafting and delivering the Living Longer Living Better aged-care reforms. These reforms were driven by choice and independence, giving people those two really important parts of decision-making in their lives. They were landmark reforms which delivered the largest improvements to aged care and ageing policy in a generation. These policies delivered more support and care in the home. They delivered additional home and residential care places and they delivered greater recognition of diversity and support for carers as well as our seniors.

It's becoming more and more common for older Australians to want to remain living in their own homes—and who could blame them? There's a sense of comfort when you live in your own home. The effects of ageing can be quite stressful, let alone when you throw in a huge change like having to move from your home into an aged-care facility or retirement village. When you put that into the mix, it can be quite a stressful time. But I have to say that, unfortunately—and, more so, disappointingly—the government has failed to keep up with the increasing demand for in-home care, support and assistance for our older Australians. Despite the fact that aged-care services need to be timely and accessible, many of our seniors are experiencing long delays in accessing the services they need. Every day, through an email, through a phone call or through somebody walking into my office, I hear the frustration not just from seniors in our community but from their loved ones. They raise with me their anxiety about being able to have access to these services. Nobody should have to wait for care that they require. Nobody should have to miss out on the level of care that they need or that their health professionals have designated that they need.

Our seniors need and deserve to have a government that advocates for them to receive the in-home care assistance that they need, when they need it and at the level they need it. What we're finding is bureaucracy and political spin that's unacceptable. The question for this government really is: how many people are waiting? We talk about the number of packages that are delivered, and that is absolutely welcomed. But how many people are waiting? I'm a little perplexed why we can't find this data from the government. How many people are waiting? If we look at people anywhere from Burpengary to Bribie, how many people are waiting for their package to be delivered? And what anxiety are they and their carers feeling as a result?

The other point I would like to raise is that, when we're talking about seniors, it is also those people in their fifties who are starting to think about retirement and moving into those retirement years. It is this government's intent to raise the pension age to 70. Could you imagine a bricklayer having to work until they're 70 years old? Outrageous! If you work in the Queensland sun and you're laying bricks for an occupation, that's a pretty hard job. Over 22 per cent of people who live in Longman are over 60 years of age. That's higher than the national figure. That's higher than Queensland's figure. I don't think it's right that these people should be ignored by our government. I don't think it's right that people, whether they live in Morayfield, Woodford or Caboolture, aren't receiving the care they need. They're constantly worried about what sort of package they can get and how long they have to wait. They're living longer and living better with dignity in a community. They continue to contribute to that community—that is incredibly important. They deserve the very, very best.

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