Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Hansard source

You were in government, Senator. We introduced the legislation but you were in government. Your government and your minister took their eye off the ball and that is why this government cannot be trusted when it comes to looking after the welfare of older Australians. I will debate any senator on that side and I will debate the minister in the other place. When it comes to aged care the only government that will ever look after the best interests of older Australians will be a Labor government. Those on the other side stand condemned. Over 10 months ago the Abbott government vowed to undertake an audit of the various funds available for aged care workforce development with a view to developing a cohesive strategy. That was 10 months ago and what have we seen? Nothing. Nothing has been done because the government do not value aged care in this country. We had a minister for ageing and he was in cabinet so he had a strong voice—and I cannot speak highly enough of Mr Butler from the other place. We did all the heavy lifting

We brought in the Living Longer, Living Better framework, which was going to take us forward for the next decade. Of course, there is always more to be done, and the incoming government had the responsibility to oversee, review and carry out those audits, but they have failed and failed miserably. They have not communicated with the community about the changes that will be upon us on 1 July. They have not bothered explaining them.

There are good things in aged care, and I give credit to the government that there are some things they have kept in place. They should be commended for that, and I do commend them, but I will not allow those people on the other side to tell untruths and to continue to mislead the Australian community. What have the government really done? As I said, they have cut $40.2 million from the Aged Care Workforce Fund. The aged-care workers again have been abandoned and just brushed aside. The Abbott government fail to recognise that we need an adequately skilled and well-qualified aged-care workforce if we are to deliver what I believe we should have: the world's best practice when it comes to aged care. Australians deserve nothing less.

In my home state of Tasmania, by 2020, which is not that far away, we will need an additional 5,000 workers in the aged-care sector. Those workers need to be working not just in residential facilities; they need to be able to provide the services to keep people in their homes. A smart government would recognise that that would save them a lot of money, because we know, when older Australians end up in residential care now, that is when it is the most expensive. The longer a smart government can keep them at home, the better it is for the bank balance. But, because they do not care, have no vision and have no interest, they are not smart. In Tasmania, we know that there are already 1,000 people on the waiting lists, waiting for home based care. That is 1,000 older Tasmanians who have paid their taxes. They have worked to build up this country, along with all those other thousands of people across the country who need that assistance to stay at home. What have the government done? The only thing that they have demonstrated, and they have demonstrated it very clearly, is that they have no idea, no vision and no strategy and, quite frankly, they do not care.

Attracting new workers into this sector must occur for the future of this country. We have to recognise that, by 2050, we will need 310,000 people out there looking after all of us who are ageing and those who are coming behind us. It is not a question of whether this is possible or not; it has to happen. We have no choice. We are all living much longer, which is a fantastic thing—I like collecting all these numbers—but the reality is that the federal government has the responsibility in this country to ensure that we have the world's best aged-care facilities and support.

Labor's Living Longer, Living Better aged-care reforms and the Addressing the Workforce Pressures measures were aimed at providing funding and initiatives to ensure the longevity and productivity of those working in aged care. In government, what Labor tried to achieve—and we set the framework—was to ensure that there was a future not only for a strong workforce in this country but for a career path. We have to ensure that people coming to work in this very important sector are not those who just could not get a job somewhere else. We do not want people to join the sector because they cannot find any other job; we want people working in the sector to be there because it is a rewarding experience and they are valued. We want nursing staff to see the aged-care sector as just as exciting and as rewarding as working in an acute care hospital. This is our responsibility.

The Aged Care Workforce Compact, developed by an independently chaired advisory group in consultation with the sector, would have improved services, attracted and retained new staff, and trained staff so that they became the industry leaders. It would have ensured that their career development was an integral part of the sector-wide plan. Included under this measure was Labor's $1.2 billion aged-care workforce supplement. This funding would have assisted in improving ongoing sustainability and retention of aged-care workers. What did the current government do when they came into office? They scrapped it and they have failed to put any other reforms in place.

What else did the 2015-16 budget offer aged care? As if it were not bad enough, the government also decided to cut funding to dementia—yet again. As I said, last year the government cut the dementia and severe behaviour supplement. This is well documented and Australians were up in arms about the lack of care demonstrated by the government to those who are most vulnerable. What did the government do this year? They cut the funding again. This time the arrogant and callous government have cut $20 million from the Dementia and Aged Care Services Fund. Again, it just demonstrates the lack of priority the government give to those who are most vulnerable and those in the aged-care sector. They have no regard for older Australians and no regard for their welfare. Quite clearly, the only thing Mr Abbott cares about is his own job, because that is what this budget was all about. It was all about shoring up Mr Abbott's own job. We are yet to see whether it will save Mr Hockey's job or whether Mr Morrison will be the new Treasurer—in fact, maybe he will go straight to the top and take over from Mr Abbott.

The government have quite clearly failed the Australian people when it comes to aged care. For those suffering with dementia and their families, this is such a disappointing, harsh and callous budget. Not only did they attack those with dementia, but the outrageous attack on young mothers in this country is a disgrace, and I am embarrassed to be sitting opposite— (Time expired)