Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House:

(1)

notes that:

(a)

since the abolition of the Commonwealth Dental Program, waiting lists for dental services have increased dramatically;

(b)

an increasing number of Australians are unable to afford private dental treatment and are waiting years for dental care; and

(c)

poor dental health can contribute to a deterioration in overall health; and

(2)

calls on the Government to:

(a)

acknowledge that the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health and Ageing inquiry of November 2006, The Blame Game, recommended that the Federal Government should fund dental services;

(b)

reinstate a Commonwealth dental program; and

(c)

end the ‘Blame Game’ and work cooperatively with the States and Territories to ensure that services are delivered.

Here we are yet again talking about dental health and dental health care. It is certainly an issue that I will keep speaking about until the government takes some responsibility for this and does something. It certainly is very disappointing that this government does not take its responsibility for the dental health of its citizens seriously. This is despite the fact that a Commonwealth dental scheme is certainly very urgently needed throughout this nation.

A recent ACOSS national report on the state of dental care explains that it is not just low-income Australians who cannot afford to go to the dentist. ACOSS estimates that 40 per cent of Australians cannot access dental care when they need it. In my electorate of Richmond, I hear stories every day of locals who have been waiting for years to have basic dental work done. Some are in extreme pain, some are barely able to eat or speak, some have their dentures simply falling out of their mouths and some even have to resort to pulling out their own teeth. This is clearly unacceptable and, indeed, I believe it is quite shameful.

As I said, every day people raise issues with me—particularly elderly people who are certainly in extreme pain. Elderly people and young families cannot afford to see a private dentist; it is these people who have been abandoned by this government. Yet it seems that MPs on the other side of the House refuse to take up the fight for their constituents. It seems they are happy for people in their electorates to wait years to have their teeth fixed.

Instead of telling the Prime Minister and Minister for Health and Ageing that they need to invest in dental care, what do those on the other side of the House do? They spend their time buck-passing and carping on about the states. That is all we tend to hear from the other side. State and territory governments have invested in dental care, but they need the federal government to fulfil its responsibility. But the Howard government consistently refuses to do this. Time and time again it has refused to do so.

Just to enlighten coalition members, I draw their attention to section 51(xxiiiA) of the Australian Constitution, which gives the federal government responsibility for dental health. It might be good if they brushed up on that to see exactly where the responsibility for this important area lies. But instead of taking this responsibility seriously, the Howard government scrapped the $100 million a year Commonwealth Dental Health Scheme in 1996. This is despite the Minister for Health and Ageing saying:

The Keating government’s program did reduce waiting times, no doubt about that.

So perhaps the health minister can explain to the 4,000 people in my electorate of Richmond who have signed my petition calling for the Commonwealth funding to be restored just why he refuses to take responsibility for their dental health. And it is not just the dental health of local people that the health minister is putting at risk. Indeed, recent studies have shown that poor dental health can lead to a range of general health problems. These include strokes, heart disease and chronic infections. And it can also make diabetes difficult to manage.

By not providing adequate public dental health care and not training enough dentists, the federal government is putting the health of Australians at risk. In the recent report of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health and Ageing inquiry entitled The blame game: report on the inquiry into health funding, it was recommended that the federal government should fund dental services. This committee noted this in its blame game report, so why can’t the government acknowledge it? Why is it so hard for members opposite to acknowledge that fact? It is time to stop the buck-passing and reinstate a Commonwealth dental program. Let us end the blame game and let us see the federal government working cooperatively with the states and territories to ensure that services are delivered and to ensure there is adequate health care for all of those who need it throughout our communities.

In contrast to the Howard government and their absolute inaction on this very important health issue, federal Labor have been very proactive in this area. We announced that we would restore federal funding for dental care and we are currently examining a range of options for a broad based Commonwealth system offering free dental care on a means-tested basis. Indeed, a Rudd Labor government will focus on prevention and early intervention, taking the pressure off waiting lists and tackling our dentist shortages. We are doing this because we acknowledge that it is a federal government responsibility to provide dental health care and that the Howard government is not meeting that obligation.

I call on coalition MPs to support this motion and stop blaming everybody but their own government for this problem. This is an issue that requires national leadership; it is not about blaming. It is very easy for the government to stand here and blame the states in relation to this, but this is not about blaming; it is about fixing the problem. So I call on government members to support this motion. I call on them to have the Commonwealth dental scheme back in place and to work with the states to make sure we have adequate dental health services for all Australians who so desperately need it. (Time expired)

Ian Causley (Page, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Peter Slipper (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It will not come as any surprise to the honourable member for Richmond that I do not, in any way, shape or form, support the motion on dental health currently before the chamber. The only way that I would support such a motion would be if the Commonwealth were to take over the administration of health nationally from the states, given the fact that the states right around the country—including in my home state of Queensland—have comprehensively failed in this area.

You cannot have a situation in a federation where there is supposedly a division of powers between the Commonwealth and the state governments but whenever the states drop the ball and do not meet their constitutional obligations they come cap in hand to the Australian government and say, ‘Well, it’s now your responsibility to fund dental services,’ in this particular case, or for that matter in other areas. In fact, there is an increasing tendency in Australia for everyone to contact the Commonwealth government when states are letting down the community.

The reason we have such a large number of mendicants coming to the doors of the Treasurer and the Prime Minister wanting Commonwealth funding is that this government, over the last 10 or 11 years, has shown responsible economic management and the government therefore has the economic ability—now that Labor’s debt has been paid back—to fund extra services. And this is what the government has been doing. But you have to draw the line somewhere and if Federation is to mean anything then one ought to recognise that the provision of dental services in the public area ought to be the responsibility of the states of Australia.

We have a situation where, for a short period between 1994 and 1996, the Commonwealth dental program existed but it was never intended to be a takeover of funding responsibilities for dental health. It was simply a short-term program to address the growing waiting lists that people were experiencing as a result of the dilatory approach of various state governments.

We also ought to recognise that every last cent of the goods and services tax goes to the states. This should give the states the ability to spend extra money on roads, schools and hospitals. In fact, we have a situation where the level of government who has constitutional responsibility for a particular area has now the economic wherewithal to fund that responsibility. Before the goods and services tax came in, before our new tax system was fully established, we had a situation where the government that spent the money was not always the government that raised the money.

When one looks at the amount of money going to the various states as a result of the GST, there is absolutely no excuse for the states not to provide adequate dental health services for needy Australians. In New South Wales the goods and services tax will put $10.9 billion in the current financial year into the coffers of the New South Wales Labor government, compared to $10.3 billion the year before. In Queensland, the figure this year is $7.9 billion, up from $7.6 billion the previous year. Victoria received $7.7 billion in the last financial year, and this will increase to $8.5 billion this year.

The Commonwealth dental plan ended in 1997, when waiting lists returned to manageable levels, but unfortunately the states have introduced no initiatives to address the underlying problems and waiting lists are once again growing. The states have acknowledged that dental care is their responsibility, and it really is important that state governments right around the country meet that constitutional responsibility and do away with the appalling situation where dental health is not being addressed.

It is a sad indictment that the member for Richmond finds it necessary to stand in the parliament just before the looming state election to talk about the federal government picking up this state responsibility. Labor has had years to fix the problem and has not, and it really ought to be recognised by the people in New South Wales that the state Labor government has failed. The alternative government, Mr Debnam’s coalition, has pledged to spend an extra $208.5 million on public dentistry, and I hope this fact is recognised when the New South Wales state election comes along. I know that the member for Richmond is simply playing politics. I know that she is trying to divert attention from the woeful performance by the state Labor government, but she has no credibility. (Time expired)

Steve Georganas (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I too rise to support this motion on dental health. I have raised the need for a Commonwealth funded dental health scheme on many occasions in this place before. The need for such a scheme is undeniable. This government abolished the Commonwealth dental scheme in 1996, and by the year 2000 Australians were waiting up to five years to see a dentist. The Commonwealth dental program placed $100 million a year into public dental services. Then in 1996, with the end of the program, this government took that funding away and left millions of Australians without access to public dental care.

Well over half a million Australians, approximately 650,000, are on waiting lists for public dental care. Some have been waiting for years to see a dentist. For some the waiting times are longer than three years. I have constituents who see me on a regular basis and who are in extreme pain waiting a year to two years before they see anyone to look after their teeth. In South Australia, though, thanks to increased funding by the state government, waiting periods have been reduced to less than two years, which is still clearly far too long for anyone that has dental issues.

Federal Labor has also devised a plan to fix the state of Australia’s public dental system. Australians deserve a dental care system that provides them with the services they need. Throughout Australia the number of people on the dental waiting lists has increased by 42 per cent since the Commonwealth Dental Health Program was axed. The federal government say that dental care is not their responsibility. That is what we have heard time and time again. They say that it is up to the states. Once again I would like to refer to section 51 of the Australian Constitution, which clearly states:

The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws for the peace, order, and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to—

amongst other things—

dental services ...

That is clearly stated in section 51. The Australian Constitution explicitly states that dental care is a federal government responsibility. The federal government need to stop playing the blame game we have seen time and time again and they need to start taking responsibility for Australia’s dental health.

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health and Ageing report appropriately named The blame game recommended on page 74 in recommendation 3 that the federal government supplement dental care for those in disadvantaged positions. I call upon the health minister to act on that recommendation from The blame game report. Australia has had repeated budget surpluses year after year, and that is good. It is astonishing, though, when you think that this government cannot find it in its heart to fund a federal dental program. In 1994 we had the Commonwealth Dental Health Program. In 1996 under this government that program was axed.

There is also a huge skills crisis in the dental industry. Australia needs an additional 120 graduates a year before the dental labour force will be self-sufficient. Without the skills in Australia’s workforce our dental system is not going to improve. This government has not invested in relieving Australia’s skills crisis and now, with the shortage of dentists in Australia, Australians will be forced onto longer waiting lists for treatment.

Adding to the demand is the fact that the progress made in children’s oral health during the nineties is now being reversed. In coming years these children will need more ongoing dental care than the generation who were going through school last decade. The number of children under six years of age being admitted to hospitals for dental care increased by 95 per cent between 2000 and 2005. The deterioration in the dental health of Australian children—surprise, surprise—has coincided with the Howard government ending the Commonwealth dental scheme. People on pensions are more likely than the rest of the population to have decay and are twice as likely to have lost teeth through decay; 44 per cent of concession holders aged between 45 and 64 avoid or put off going to the dentist because of the cost.

I feel like a broken record because I have stated all this time and time again, but this government just is not listening. The prolonged waiting lists for dental care have the potential to lead to more serious illnesses, such as blood infections, malnutrition and cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular disease is Australia’s leading cause of death, so ignoring the dental care needs of Australians is a life and death matter. The community is sick of the federal government trying to play the blame game and passing the buck to anywhere but itself.

The situation is already bad enough, but with the supply of dentists increasingly failing to meet demand the situation is only going to get worse. We need more dentists and therefore more training places for dentists, and we need a national dental health program as a matter of urgency. Clearly not one person in this country can ever expect this current government to provide dental services. I am committed to a federal dental scheme. I will fight for such a scheme and will continue to do so until such a program is funded. (Time expired)

Michael Johnson (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am pleased to speak in the Australian parliament today as the federal member for Ryan—a wonderful electorate in the western suburbs which I very proudly have represented from November 2001 and will continue to represent very strongly here in the House of Representatives. I am delighted to be able to speak on this motion on dental health because it really does give me an opportunity to reflect for those who might be listening—and I see that there are some young Australians visiting the parliament and I welcome them to their national parliament—on how grossly incompetent and absolutely neglectful the state and territory governments of this country are in terms of their responsibilities.

The state and territory governments of this country are up to their necks in scandal and corruption. It is little wonder that they are not able to focus on the quality of service delivery in a whole host of areas—notably, of course, in the service delivery of public dental health care. This is a responsibility of the state and territory governments. Quite frankly, members opposite, from the Labor Party, are playing the blame game, and they are shirking their responsibilities. I am appalled that so many Australians—in particular, I am quite concerned that many elderly Australians and many Australians on lower incomes—are having to wait ridiculously long periods of time to access dental care. It really is not good enough for a country of our wealth and prosperity. But let us make no mistake about who actually is to blame in this context. It is not about blame of itself; it is about the allocation of responsibility. We live in a federation, and the area of public dental health care has been allocated to the states and territories.

We do not want any of those opposite trying to dodge the reality, so let me put a few things straight on the record. The first thing I want to say in the parliament and to the constituents of Ryan who might end up reading my words here in Hansard is that the Commonwealth dental health scheme that they referred to was in operation for only three years—three short years—during the time of the previous Labor government. Before and after those three years, funding was the responsibility of the state governments. Why was the scheme introduced? It was introduced as a temporary measure. It was a measure to address the terribly long queues in the state system—and that of itself is an acknowledgement that the state governments had this responsibility, a very important responsibility. To redress the terribly long queues in the state health system, the federal government of the time took it upon itself to make a contribution to dental health care. The scheme existed between 1994 and 1996. It was a one-off attempt to help the states with their appalling backlog.

As I said, all Australians will know that we live in a federation. They might not like it, but at the end of the day that is the reality. We live in a federation that involves the division of responsibilities. The national government has responsibility for things like defence, immigration, customs and, of course, foreign affairs. These are within the remit of the national parliament. On the other hand, the states have a mandate to look after local roads, local schools, local hospitals and local courts. It is this division of government responsibility that defines our federal structure. For it to work, both the federal government and the state governments must keep their end of the deal.

Unfortunately we are seeing, right across this country, in every state, that the Labor governments of those states are simply not keeping their end of the deal. Quite frankly, I do not believe that they have the abilities or the talents to govern, and I say this across the board. So it is little wonder that the states are continuing to expect the federal government to step in and clean up their incompetence. We all know that the states are swimming in GST that this government implemented as part of the sweeping taxation reforms in the late 1990s. Queensland alone is swimming in $8 billion of GST. Every single dollar of revenue that has arisen in the marketplace goes to the state governments. As I said, there is $8 billion of GST for Queensland alone. I recollect, I think, that the Premier of Queensland was the first Premier to sign on to this treasure of cash coming his way. He could not sign fast enough, because he knew that this was cash for him to spend on services in his state. Unfortunately, he is not meeting his responsibilities. (Time expired)

Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I could be forgiven for thinking that I had accidentally ended up in a state parliament. All I have heard for the last few minutes is the state opposition having a great time. This is the federal parliament. What I would like to know is why, every time dental care is raised in the federal parliament, all we get from the government is pure politics—politics, pure politics, and nothing but politics. Sure as hell, it has nothing whatsoever to do with the truth. It is about finding someone else to blame, pointing the finger, deflecting attention from their own failures, finding anyone else to blame—anything but taking responsibility for the parlous state of dental health in this country.

Many people ask me why a person would ever get into politics. I have to say that sometimes, sitting in this parliament, I wonder that myself. But my answer is quite simple: many in this parliament did not get into politics; we got into governance. Politics is a rather unfortunate necessary evil at times, but most of us are here for governance, for responsibility, for caring about this nation and for actually doing the job. But unfortunately, from the government, when it comes to dental care, we do not get governance; we get pure politics and only politics.

Let us have a look at the state of dental health while the government plays politics with this important issue. Advances made in children’s oral health during the early nineties are well and truly being reversed. Children at school now will need greater ongoing care than the generation who were going through school in the last decade. Demand by eligible people is expected to increase by around 30 per cent over the next 10 years, compared to about 14 per cent in the general population, and that is specifically because of the neglect by the federal government over the last 10 years. The neglect of children now will cost them, and us all, more in the future. All taxpayers will pay for the failure of this government to accept its responsibility.

Let us just talk about that for a minute. Is it a state or a federal issue? We heard the member for Fisher talking about the states taking on their constitutional responsibility. Actually, the Commonwealth Constitution refers to dental health as a Commonwealth responsibility. What about the federal government taking on its constitutional responsibility? Secondly, it was the federal government, the Howard government in 1996, as one of its first acts in this parliament, that made the choice for the federal government to withdraw from dental health and leave it to the states—a choice made by this government. And now it tends to blame the states for the choice that it made. This was a federal responsibility for the last years of the previous government. It was this government that chose to return all the responsibility but not the money to the states.

Michael Johnson (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Johnson interjecting

Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Oh, yes, we have more blame at the moment. It is pure politics. Try some governance when it comes to dental health. You are the government; you are responsible. Don’t point the finger at everyone else; you are the government.

Michael Johnson (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The federal government should be spending money on air conditioning.

Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

After 10 years, it is about time you took the responsibility that you should—that you accepted that you are the government and stopped playing state opposition.

Michael Johnson (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Johnson interjecting

Ian Causley (Page, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Ryan!

Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Go and join the state opposition if that is where you want to be.

Michael Johnson (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Johnson interjecting

Ian Causley (Page, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Ryan is warned!

Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You are in the federal parliament. You are responsible. You are the government; do your job.

De-Anne Kelly (Dawson, National Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Transport and Regional Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Deputy Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The speaker should not use the expression ‘you’.

Ian Causley (Page, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is no point of order.

Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let us look at the state of our trained dentists. At the moment, the average age of dentists is over 50. Within the next four years we will see a shortfall of about 1,500 dental care providers and yet we are graduating only 250 dental students a year. We would need to increase that by about 120 a year to meet demand, so in the years to come access to dental services will become even more difficult. After 10 years of the Howard government, there are 500,000 people on waiting lists for dental care. The previous Labor government spent $100 million a year on a scheme, and during that time 1.5 million Australians accessed the scheme. Yet, as one of its first acts, this federal government junked it and now blames everybody else for the decision it made.

Studies by the Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council show that children from poor groups have twice as many rotten teeth as those from wealthy groups—and what do we get from the government? We get pure politics. Twenty per cent of the population—the poorest—have 80 per cent of the disease, and we get more politics from the federal government. There is no responsibility, just blame and politics. (Time expired)

Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to address the private members’ business motion on dental health put forward by the member for Richmond, who I note is no longer in the chamber. It is important to note as a parliament the concerns she raises—they are real concerns—but we have to focus on who has responsibility for the dental care of all Australians. It is true that oral health care and overall health and wellbeing are intrinsically linked. However, the argument of the member for Richmond, who has left the chamber—I am quite surprised; when you put up a private member’s motion you would normally stay in the chamber to hear other contributions—is fundamentally flawed. In fact, I find it quite amusing that she is calling for the blame game to stop.

It is widely understood that, under the national health agreement, state and territory governments have a responsibility for the management of dental health care in their communities, yet the member for Richmond is calling on this federal government to stop blaming the states for the appalling situation with dental health care. The way I see it is that the member for Richmond should not be blaming the federal government for this situation but should start blaming her state colleagues. There is a state election going on right now in the state of New South Wales. She ought to be out there calling on the Labor Party to fix the appalling dental health situation the people of New South Wales are confronted with. But, no, she comes into this chamber and blames this government when it is not our responsibility.

Since the introduction of the GST by this government, the state and territory governments have been receiving a substantial windfall in revenue. Of course, the good economic management of this government has also allowed the state and territory governments to have an additional windfall by way of stamp duties because of the strong economy. However, it appears to me—and, I know, to all members on this side of the House—that these windfalls are not being used appropriately. Instead, they are being squandered. Last week the Queensland Premier took out a full-page advertisement in national newspapers promoting his plan to reinstate the Bradfield scheme. It was just another political stunt, using taxpayers’ money to promote the Bradfield scheme in the lead-up to the Prime Minister’s water summit last Friday.

The Queensland Labor government is failing the people of Queensland in dental care. A media release issued in December last year by the shadow minister for health, John-Paul Langbroek from Surfers Paradise, said that over 79,000 Queenslanders are waiting up to seven years and eight months for public dental services. Clearly, just as the Queensland state government fails in healthcare services it is also failing in dental care services. Even the previous health minister was not concerned with fixing the acutely appalling state health and dental care services in Queensland. It is interesting to note that there is now a CJC inquiry into the former minister’s activities whilst he was a minister.

It has never been a Commonwealth responsibility to directly fund dental health services or infrastructure. It is the responsibility of the states and territories. It is about time the Labor Party, when they are in government all around Australia at state and territory level, stopped squandering their budgets and used them for important items like fixing the state dental and health systems. Having one level of government responsible for dental care would ensure accountability.

The Commonwealth does fund several programs to assist with dental services across the country. About 12 months ago, in my electorate of Maranoa, a private health provider in Brisbane received $384,000 to establish a state-of-the art teledentistry system for the people living in Barcaldine, Longreach and Winton. That private company received the money to assess patients prior to a dentist visiting those towns, which they do for a week in every month. Since dental services are predominately provided by the private sector, the Commonwealth supports dental care with a 30 per cent private health insurance rebate, which is estimated to have cost $438 million for dental services in 2005-06. (Time expired)

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! It being 1.45 pm, the debate is interrupted in accordance with standing order 43. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.