Anika Wells (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Aged Care) Share this | Hansard source

I cannot believe that those opposite, of all weeks, would choose this week to try to lecture the government on management and funding of the aged-care system and to suggest, to dare to criticise us for trying to pull every single lever we have at our disposal to try and lift the standard of aged care as quickly as humanly possible—to walk into this chamber and criticise us for trying to take that action to lift the standard of care for residents. It is unfathomable that they have learnt nothing. After neglecting the sector for nine long years, they walk in now and criticise the people left cleaning up their mess.

It's a workforce crisis that was formed on their watch. It's a workforce crisis that has taken 12 months to address through working on migration settings with the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, the Minister for Home Affairs, the Minister for Skills and Training, the Minister for Education, the Minister for Health and Aged Care, the Prime Minister and the Treasurer. Every single minister has had to spend time cleaning up their mess to address the crisis in aged care. And they've seriously walked in today to say, 'You're doing it too fast. You're cleaning up the mess too quickly. How dare you try and address a crisis in an urgent manner.' Unbelievable! Yet here we are, after 12 months, with them having learned nothing.

See this speech in context