Cameron Thompson (Blair, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Transport and Regional Services. Would the Deputy Prime Minister inform the House how the government is improving health care for rural Australians, including in my electorate of Blair? Are there any alternative policies?

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Blair for his question and recognise the obvious interest that he has in this issue as we try to continue to expand the availability of health services in regional and rural Australia. State Labor governments across Australia are abrogating their responsibilities to the constituency in rural Australia as far as health services are concerned.

One area I would identify to the member for Blair that has been of great assistance, particularly to smaller communities in regional Australia, is the government’s Rural Medical Infrastructure Fund. It is not a large fund—$15 million—but it is helping small towns build walk-in, walk-out medical facilities. The member for Blair would be pleased to know that we have invested $165,000 from that fund for the Kilcoy Medical Centre to expand and to allow a second GP to operate and provide relief for the existing doctor in Kilcoy. It is a very important program, one that is delivering opportunities across Australia and one that some members opposite from time to time refer to as a bit of pork-barrelling or a bit of a boondoggle, as the member for Brand used to call it. I suggest they ask their colleagues the member for Lingiari and the member for Lyons whether they think it is a bit of pork-barrelling in some of the investments that have been made out of this fund in their electorates.

Since 1996, under our policy, the number of rural and remote GPs has increased by more than 20 per cent. In the last three years it has increased by 10 per cent. We are actively addressing, through the proactive policies that the minister for health is putting in place, many of the challenging issues that exist in regional Australia. Policies such as the Bonded Medical Places Scheme to encourage doctors to move to rural areas, the 500 new medical school places in 2007, rising to 600 in 2010, and the HECS Reimbursement Scheme—which provides an incentive for rural practice across Aust-ralia—are all welcomed by constituents in rural and regional Australia.

It comes as no surprise to members on this side of the House that the Labor Party continues to criticise programs like the RMIF. The Leader of the Opposition, when he released his health policy, mentioned rural health just once in 27 pages. Just once in 27 pages did he mention rural health. We all know that the Leader of the Opposition is going to be a patsy, a puppet, of the Labor premiers. They are neglecting rural health across Australia and he is going to do the same. We know that he is not strong enough to stand up to those premiers. Just like he has been very weak on unions, he has been very weak on the economy, weak on policy detail. When it comes to supporting the health needs of rural people, he will be weak again as he remains a patsy of the premiers across Australia.