Stephen Jones (Throsby, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Infrastructure) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer to the Prime Minister's secret plan to cut every single dollar from public hospitals, forcing the states to hit Australians with a new hospital tax.

Government Members:

Government members interjecting—

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

Silence on my right!

Stephen Jones (Throsby, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Infrastructure) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

How much will parents have to pay—

Government members interjecting—

The SPEAKER: There will be silence on my right!

to have their sick child seen by a doctor in an emergency department?

Honourable members interjecting—

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

I call the Leader of the House. There will be silence all round, please.

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, both the government and I think that you as chair have been extremely tolerant today of the assertions, argument and hypothetical nature of all of these questions. There is no such plan, and making the assertion and arguing that there is in the question really rule the question out of order. If the opposition can ask a question that is specific to a real government policy, that is quite different to this ludicrous hypothetical question that we are being asked time after time by the opposition.

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

I will hear from the Manager of Opposition Business.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To the point of order: it would be extraordinary if we now view as hypothetical documents that are distributed from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The—

Honourable members interjecting—

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

The Manager of Opposition Business has the call. Have you completed your point?

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes.

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

Good. I think it would be better if the member for Throsby rephrased his question—

Government members interjecting—

without debate and without hypotheticals.

Stephen Jones (Throsby, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Infrastructure) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I refer to the plan that the Prime Minister advised would be published this afternoon, which plans to cut every single dollar from public hospital funding, forcing the states to hit Australians with a new hospital tax.

Government members interjecting—

How much will parents have to pay to have their sick child seen by a doctor in an emergency department?

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

The noise that came from the government benches on this occasion made it very difficult to hear that question, but I do understand that the Prime Minister heard it. I will let it stand.

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

Our plan is to increase public hospital funding by 25 per cent over the forward estimates period. That is the plan that was published on budget night. That is our plan. As part of the Federation reform white-paper process, there is a draft discussion paper that has gone to the states and territories. It canvasses a range of issues, but the purpose—

Ms Plibersek interjecting—

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

The member for Sydney is warned!

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

of everything that is being canvassed in this discussion paper is the delivery ultimately of better services, better public hospital services and better public school services.

I would have thought that members opposite would not have been scared of a sensible debate, because—let us face it—their own national platform says:

Labor believes our … Federation—

needs—

to be modernised to resolve the funding and administrative problems that have prevented government effectively dealing with the challenges … today.

Over the last couple of days, the Leader of the Opposition has failed the challenge of leadership. He abdicated leadership when it came to budget responsibility, to the Greens. And today he has abdicated leadership of the challenge of modernising our Federation to Premier Jay Weatherill. Not only has he abdicated the challenge of leadership, but, frankly, he is even abdicating the challenge of followership, because surely it is not beyond the wit even of members opposite—even of the federal Labor Party, who have sunk so low, it seems, that they cannot even have a debate. They cannot even have a debate.

I do not believe that we have necessarily already achieved the last word of wisdom in every policy matter concerning our Federation. I think it is very important that we do spend more when it comes to public schools and public hospitals, but I do not think that spending money is the be all and the end all, the only test and measure, of good policy.

That is the problem that members opposite have. They think that more spending is the answer to every problem. Well, we found out time and time again when members opposite were in government that they could spend and spend and spend and just make a situation worse. That is what they do. They spend and spend and spend, and normally they make situations worse. I say to members opposite: have a long hard look at yourselves and engage in what is a serious process of national improvement.