Ann Sudmalis (Gilmore, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health. I refer the minister to the Nowra GP superclinic in my electorate, which was actually promised more than three years ago, is still not open and is yet to see a single patient. Will the minister update the House on how the delays to the Nowra GP superclinic have affected the provision of health services in my electorate?

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

I thank the member for Gilmore very much for her question and her continued interest in getting good health services for the people of Nowra. I come today to heap praise on the former health minister, the member for Sydney. Minister Plibersek trumpeted the GP superclinic program as one of the greatest she ever presided over and one of the greatest programs that Labor ever conjured up. I have a couple of facts to start with. They promised $650 million of taxpayers' money. It was, of course, borrowed money because they had already spent all of the taxpayers' money that they had collected. They promised 64 superclinics but they delivered 27 during their time.

Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Did you want to see any of them built?

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition will desist!

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

Some of them that were promised in 2007 still have not started construction even.

Ms Rishworth interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And the member for Kingston will desist!

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

If you look at the one for Nowra, there is a great story to be told. This is where my praise must come in.

Mr Mitchell interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And the member for McEwen!

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

I concede ground where necessary. This was a program that was promised, as I said, for 64. This one was promised in 2010.

Ms Plibersek interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition will desist!

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

The great news for the former health minister is that we are now in 2014 and construction is almost ready to start. Well done!

Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You've never supported any of them.

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

The threat of course is that patients will be turning up to a building site expecting to see a doctor but only see a carpenter or maybe a tiler.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition is warned!

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

I say to people: 'Be patient, because some were promised back as far as 2007.' We want to see better health outcomes for Australians, but we are not going to do it Labor's way. We are not going to do it by promising to put money into clinics that were set up to run in competition with doctors who had already put their own money into constructing their clinics. You had people who were putting at risk their own capital, doctors who had worked hard to build the clinics, yet you had the Labor government coming along with borrowed money—$650 million—saying that they were going to set up a taxpayer funded clinic diagonally opposite the doctors' clinic. It made no sense. In fact, it detracted from the primary care model because young doctors coming through did not want to buy into those existing practices. Labor wasted money—billions and billions of dollars.

We are coming up to the fourth anniversary of the Nowra clinic. It is just about to start construction. It should remain as a legacy of Labor's incompetence into all time.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

After 23 very well-answered questions, I ask that further questions go on the Notice Paper.

Joel Fitzgibbon (Hunter, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, I seek leave to table the current government's recent media release in which it announces its commitment to the former government's funding for the blueberry industry in Tasmania.

Leave not granted.