Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yesterday the Prime Minister announced the defence forces would be operating in aged care, after repeatedly ruling it out—on 13 January, 19 January, 4 February and at other times. Why does the Prime Minister reject good ideas time and time again, always taking action which is too little too late and after a problem becomes a crisis?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

When will the Leader of the Opposition stop trying to politicise the pandemic? Time and again, the Leader of the Labor Party continues to misrepresent the facts. I simply said in January—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Andrew Wallace (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will resume his seat for one moment. I'm trying to listen to the answer. I can't hear the answer when there's such noise on my left. The Prime Minister has the call.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I made the point, quite openly and honestly, that the suggestion that the defence forces could be a replacement workforce for the aged-care sector was not a realistic option. That's all I've said. That is not what the government has now done. I was very clear yesterday about what the targeted involvement would be of the defence forces, as I asked them on the very day the Leader of the Labor Party accuses me of saying they had no role. On the very day, or thereabouts, I spoke to the Vice Chief of Defence Force and asked him to work—

Andrew Wallace (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition, on a point of order?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It goes to relevance. The Prime Minister said, 'I've seen the suggestion that the defence forces can go in and operate in aged care.' No, that's not the case. That's what you—

Andrew Wallace (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat. There's no valid point of order. The Prime Minister has the call.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Labor Party can snarl and growl all he likes, as he has done over the course of this pandemic. He has constantly been negative when it comes to the serious challenges that our country has faced. He can seek to downplay Australians' efforts, in how we've come through this pandemic, with his constant negativity, snarling and growling, but the facts are these: on each occasion, we have worked to address the situation that we have had before us. On each and every occasion, we have sought to apply the resources—whether they be the defence forces, our own Public Service officers and those around the country—to address the needs that have been required, particularly in the aged-care sector, where our defence forces were applied in Victoria during the second wave and are now being used in a similar way with targeted interventions, not with the wholesale replacement of the aged-care workforce. If the Leader of the Opposition—the Leader of the Labor Party—were actually interested in solving the problem, he would have attended himself to the facts of those issues. The Leader of the Labor Party is all about exploiting this pandemic, not about addressing it.