Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party, Deputy Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Hansard source

That certainty could have been provided some time ago, if it had been agreed. Clearly, as I have already outlined, the benefits would have been there in moving to that system; however, as I understand it, negotiations are still underway.

I do understand that the minister is in discussions with those opposite about those broader reforms and I do find it very unfortunate that Senator Di Natale should stand today complaining about a lack of appropriate timeliness when this could have been dealt with long before now—moving to what people would recognise would be a much more beneficial scheme for the people that it is intended to help as opposed to, as I outlined in my first response, the great deficiencies in the current Child Dental Benefits Schedule, which would have been alleviated by moving to the coalition government's policy.