Julian McGauran (Victoria, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

All my research is going out the window because those on the other side are provoking me. They have no sense of the oath that they made at this table. There is a time for politicking, but you never do it in the area of health. You cannot play with people’s lives like this. You cannot play with their household budgets. You cannot play with their emotions. What do you think people on chemotherapy think? What do you think the mothers who want a home birth think? You want to play politics with that? You want to take an ideological stand with regard to private insurance and with people’s ability to access care when they need it, when they are most ill?

Of course, Senator Polley is scuttling out of the chamber. She has had enough. Reality hits. What sort of public representative plays politics with the health portfolio? As I said, I would be happy to vigorously debate any other issue. I have been here long enough to understand the politics.

This side of the chamber does not play politics on health. It does not work, for No. 1. The public will not accept it. If you think you can, they will not accept it. They will vote you out on this issue alone. You can have all the stimulus packages and school halls and pink batts that you like, but you play around with health, as you are in every budget and in between the budgets, and you know the pressure that will come your way. You have had to back down on some issues so you know the pressure that comes your way—or you ought to. There is many an ignorant person across the other side, but there are some sensible heads who have sought to back down. Of course, I would like to think it was because of the cogent arguments put up by the shadow minister here in the chamber, Senator Cormann. He has carried the whole debate very well since we came into opposition and you went into government, but I would venture to say that even Senator Cormann—who probably rallied all the public protest himself—would admit that the backdowns have not necessarily come from our side. We do not really think that you listen to us that much or to the numbers in this chamber. We know that the backdowns that have been forced upon you from some of the idiotic budget announcements have come from the public.