Jenny Ware (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I was here for the motion brought by the member for Aston and to hear her speech, which I found quite incredible on a number of levels. I know the member for Aston is a relatively new member, but it's always interesting, unfortunately, when members stand up and simply read out party talking points. It doesn't make for a great speech, particularly when quite a bit of it was disingenuous.

I move, first of all, to the first part of this motion that's been brought by the member for Aston. It says: 'The government is strengthening Medicare and delivering cost-of-living relief to Australians. It includes a record investment in bulk-billing.' That has not occurred in the seat of Hughes.

Of the 25 practices in my electorate with comparable data between 2019 and 2024—this is coming from the Parliamentary Library; it's not coming from party talking points—only four now continue to be bulk-bill only. That change has been since this Albanese Labor government came in saying, 'There's nothing more important than Medicare.' That change has occurred in the 2½ years since this government has been in. Three of the practices that were previously bulk-billing have moved to mixed billing. This means that, generally, only children and pensioners are bulk-billed. Ten practices have continued to offer mixed billing, three have moved from mixed billing to fees applying for all services, three have remained simply as 'fees applied' and one previously listed as 'other' is now described as mixed billing.

We have had a massive decline in bulk-billing in the electorate of Hughes, and I have written to the Minister for Health and Aged Care about this. I invite him to come down and meet with these bulk-billing practices, because the GPs in my electorate of Hughes are furious on behalf of their patients.

It's a shame that the member for Aston hasn't stayed for her own motion. The third part of her motion says that she welcomes the influx of new doctors entering the workforce. Let me tell you what has happened in my electorate at Wattle Grove family practice. It's a family practice located out at Holsworthy, with over 3,000 patients on its books. The minister has now changed the classification of that practice from outer metropolitan to inner metropolitan, which means that this practice has now lost a registrar and cannot get the registrar back. We've gone from four doctors there down to three. That occurred in August, and I started writing to the minister about this. I thank particularly the advocacy of Dr John Stanford, who is the practice manager at Wattle Grove family practice, and also the over 500 people of south-west Sydney that have written to me and signed a petition about this issue.

I don't think that those 500 people agree that the Albanese Labor government has strengthened Medicare. They certainly haven't invested in Medicare. They have not invested in public health in my electorate, and that is proven. The minister for health has refused to assist to re-classify Wattle Grove family practice so that we can get that additional doctor. So, when I hear that the member for Aston has been able to have an increase in doctors in her electorate, I can't help but ask: is it the case that the health minister assisted the electorate of Aston because Aston is now represented by a Labor member of parliament? If not, why will he not assist the people in my electorate?

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