Mal Washer (Moore, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Ageing. Minister, since the election of the government there have been no applications from aged-care facility providers in my electorate of Moore to invest in high-care aged-care beds. Can the Minister explain the reasons for this lack of interest in high-care aged-care places in northern Perth?

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

I thank the member for his question and I am certainly pleased to highlight our funding for aged and community care in Western Australia and right across Australia. Over the next four years, funding for aged and community care will reach record levels of $44 billion, and the government is investing record amounts in aged and community care with more than $2.6 billion being invested in residential aged care in Western Australia over the next four years. Since the election of the Rudd government, operational residential aged-care beds in Western Australia have increased. Indeed, the latest aged-care approvals round saw a total of 1,544 new aged-care places for Western Australia. This consisted of 519 residential aged-care places and 1,025 community care places worth over $50 million in annual recurrent funding. In addition, over $10.5 million has been allocated in capital and community care grants to develop and support new services.

Wilson Tuckey (O'Connor, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order relating to standing order 104 but more so to the issue of responsibility to the people of Australia. The question was about old people who are not getting the expenditure necessary to house them in the northern suburbs. We are getting a diatribe about expenditure and no answer for the people.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for O’Connor will resume his seat. He cannot debate his point of order. If the point of order is on relevance, the Minister for Ageing is responding to the question.

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

Those figures I outlined before bring the total of operational aged care places in Western Australia to more than 19,900. As I said to the House last week, with this government’s commitment to health, hospital and aged-care reform, we have been going around the country speaking to many frontline health professionals about the future of our health and aged-care systems, an area that the coalition neglected whilst they were in government. We saw a severe lack of funding right across the sector when it comes to aged care. It is this government that has delivered record funding to aged care and delivered increased compliance when it comes to aged care.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, on a point of order: the minister has made no mention of high-care places. I know all of these flowery figures hide the fact that there has been no interest in high-care places and no mention—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The point of order has to be a point of order on relevance. The minister is responding to the question and I indicate to members that, as they know, it is not possible for the occupant of the chair to direct the way in which the minister decides that he or she will respond to the question.

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

As I said, this government has committed record amounts to aged care—$44 billion over the next four years. We have also recognised that, for the long term, we need to be providing the health, hospital and aged-care sectors for our ageing population, an area neglected by the coalition when they were in government. Alternatively, the Rudd government are committed to making sure we are having extensive consultations on the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission report and, as we have said in the House many times, we are consulting with frontline health professionals around the country—areas which the coalition neglected time and time again.