David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to report that my community has lost another general practice. Last week Hobart Place General Practice announced it would be closing its doors. This practice is less than four kilometres from this chamber, an eight-minute drive. It's quite literally in the backyard of this building. This is a practice that has been serving our community, and many of them feel like they have nowhere else to go. They are supporting a large number of people living with drug dependency who cannot afford gap fees and cannot afford public transport to outer areas.

We already have an extremely low proportion of GPs per capita, one of the lowest in the nation. There is one GP for every thousand people, compared to places like Queensland and New South Wales—there are 12 GPs per thousand people in Queensland and New South Wales. There's a lot of work to do in this place. I urge the government to focus on primary care.