Simon Kennedy (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'd like to talk about healthcare funding in this budget, particularly around MRI machines. Sutherland Hospital, my local hospital, has campaigned for years for an MRI machine. This MRI machine finally arrived in 2023, but it could not be used for outpatients. I learnt about this during the recent Cook by-election. I had a resident come up to me and tell me that she was forced to choose between a six-month wait time at Kogarah hospital and being out of pocket by $700 to $800 to go private. In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, we're forcing people to choose between waiting for six months to get an MRI or paying $800.

I picked up this issue and campaigned hard for it as part of the Cook by-election. Murray Trembath covered this in the local paper, theSt George and Sutherland Shire Leader. We started a petition, which hundreds of people have signed. I've personally raised this with Health Minister Butler and his office. And I have to give credit where credit is due—Minister Butler has listened. Labor has announced $70 million for MRI machine funding, and I'm told that Sutherland Shire will now get an MRI machine licence for outpatients in 2027.

While this is welcome news, and while I commend Minister Butler for listening to me during my campaign in the Cook by-election and for listening to the residents of Cook, 2027 is still too late. I'm told that the Sutherland Hospital is the only public hospital in metropolitan Australia that does not have an MRI machine funded for outpatients. Thank you for listening, Mr Butler, but we now need to bring this forward. The residents of Cook cannot wait another three years to be forced to choose between six-month wait times and $700 to $800 for an MRI. I'm asking Minister Butler, in addition to what you have already done—it's fantastic; thank you very much for funding this important initiative—to now please bring this forward for Sutherland Hospital and get the residents of Cook and the surrounding areas access to MRIs sooner and more cheaply.

Another issue facing my community that was not addressed in this budget was funding for the compliance of e-bikes. Unsafe and inappropriate e-bike use is a major concern in my electorate and my community. This was one of the most raised issues in the recent Cook by-election, and it's something I've listened to the community about and I've acted on. Hundreds of residents have been in touch with me—they signed up to the petition. I had over 15 local residents attend a local community forum last week. We had Peter Bourke address these local constituents on current regulations. We had Sutherland Sire Council officials and the chamber of commerce. It was a very positive discussion indeed.

Yes, it was raised that we could have better import regulations from the federal government, and I'll be writing to Minister King about this. Yes, we can have more regulations at a state level and local level, but my main takeaway was that 90 per cent of the concerns of my local residents can be addressed today by enforcing local regulations. I'm pleased to announce that, coming out of that forum, we already have progress. Council officials have committed to putting up more signs. They have also committed to putting more bike racks at the start and end of the mall so people can park their e-bikes.

But we need more. We need police patrolling the area, we need police stopping kids riding illegal modified e-bikes and we need strict adherence to import rules. I am briefing Mark Speakman, the opposition leader in the state, on this. He has called for an upper house inquiry, which I will also be making a submission to as the member for Cook. I'm also briefing the new local police commander on this issue.

But there's also a need for federal government action. In 2021, the federal government changed the definition of an e-bike and removed the requirement for an import permit. I will be raising with Minister King the need to relook at these permits to make sure that the bikes we get in this country are safe and keep residents safe in my community. Only a few months ago a three-year-old boy had his leg broken clean in half, so it's about time we funded this important issue in the budget and we listened to the residents of the Sutherland shire and Cook.

More broadly, it's time to look at this budget and see what it tells us about the Anthony Albanese government. In this budget we see what Anthony Albanese believes will solve the cost-of-living crisis. What does Anthony Albanese believe will solve this cost-of-living crisis? More government. Across the last three budgets, Labor has committed an additional $315 billion in inflationary spending. This accounts for almost $30,000 per household in Australia.

This government clearly thinks the answer to this cost-of-living crisis is more government. What is their answer to higher energy costs? A $300 subsidy. What is their answer to higher childcare costs? More subsidies. What is their answer to low first-home ownership? Asking the government to take equity in people's homes. In the Liberal Party we are a little bit different. We believe in different answers. While Labor believes the answer to higher energy costs is, yes, a $300 subsidy, the Liberals believe the answer is actually lower energy prices.

Labor believes the answer to higher childcare costs is higher childcare subsidies. In the Liberal Party we believe the answer is actually lower childcare prices. In the Labor Party they believe the answer to low first-home ownership is the government buying equity in your house. In the Liberal Party we believe it is lower home prices. How do we get lower energy prices? Well, we need more supply of clean, cheap and reliable energy—not the closure of plants and certainly not the writing off of an entire technology without first investigating it. We should be looking at supply from all sources, including nuclear. How do we get lower childcare prices? More childcare centres. Let's look at the regulations and let's look at what's needed to get more childcare centres.

How do we get more first home buyers? We need more houses, a greater supply of housing. Instead, Labor believes in giving out subsidy after subsidy. What is the Labor government going to do when the money runs out? The truth is that many of these subsidies only last for a year.

After the sugar hit of $300—$75 a quarter—to pay new energy prices runs out, what are Australians to do with these rising energy prices? This isn't just a one-off subsidy. Yes, it will lower prices, but unfortunately it will try and trick the Australian public into thinking that inflation is moderating. Well, it's not. We've seen inflation go up consistently this year. We are now at 4.4 per cent core inflation, while the US, the UK, the euro region, Sweden and Canada are all seeing moderate inflation. It's lower than it is in Australia, and it's going down. In Australia it's going up.

I'd like the Albanese government to explain why Australia is different. What makes Australia so special that inflation here is going up, while everywhere else in the world it's going down? I can tell you what it is. It's this expansionary Labor government. You don't increase government spending by $315 billion without any consequences. You don't increase government spending by $30,000 per household without any consequences. The Australian people are just about to learn what these consequences are. These consequences are increasing inflation, higher interest rates for longer, higher mortgage repayments for longer and electricity and gas going up over 20 per cent year on year.

When electricity and gas are going up 20 per cent year on year, what does that mean? It means that the average Australian household will see their energy prices double every three years. As you're sitting at home there, looking at that one-off $300 subsidy, think about what that is going to do for you in three years time when your energy prices double. What is that going to do to you in six years time when your energy prices have doubled twice? In the Liberal Party, we believe in increasing supply. We believe in looking at all sources of energy, including nuclear, to make sure we have the broadest and most robust supply of clean, reliable energy.

The government have locked in bad workplace laws that are also driving up the cost of doing business. Families are now being slugged with higher tax, and Australian household industry, small-business industry, is breaking.

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