Catryna Bilyk (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Health and Ageing, Senator Ludwig. Can the minister inform the Senate why it is important for all senators to support the full range of government initiatives in health announced in the budget?

Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Bilyk for the question. Labor is proud of its commitments to improve health services for the future of Australians. We announced many key budget initiatives that will take health forward in this country. Unfortunately but not surprisingly, these important initiatives are not receiving the support they deserve from Liberals opposite. Once again, we see the Liberals preferring to play petty politics rather than support good policy for the benefit of Australians. The list is not a short list. In announcement after announcement, those Liberal senators opposite chose to play games with the health and wellbeing of Australians.

Let us start with the Liberal’s opposition to reducing the Medicare levy surcharge. What does this mean for Australians? This week many families around Australia would have sat down at the kitchen table to work out how much money they saved through the latest interest rate cut. But now those same families will have to work out how much money they will lose because the Liberals want to block the changes to the Medicare levy surcharge.

Tuesday’s official interest rate cut will put nearly $600 a year back into the wallets of families with an average mortgage right across Australia. Yet no sooner will that extra money go into the wallets of Australians than those Liberals will reach in and take it out. For a family with two income earners earning a combined income of about $120,000, the increase in the threshold for the Medicare levy surcharge will save them up to $1,200 in tax immediately. On Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia provided relief of nearly $600 per year for families with an average mortgage. And we hear a plaintive sigh from those on the other side. They do not accept what they are doing, but they are clearly doing it. The Liberal Party of Australia is planning to take that saving back in spades.

Let us not forget dental health. During the election last year, Labor announced that we would be delivering a $290 million Commonwealth Dental Health Program to help reduce public dental waiting lists. We also announced that we would be delivering on the Medicare Teen Dental Plan, providing over one million eligible teenagers with access to preventative dental checks. We gave Australians a clear choice at the last election, and the people chose Labor’s better targeted dental policies. But those opposite are economic vandals. They have an affection for cheap, short-term politics in the Senate. That is putting at risk the policies which the Australian public voted for. Let me remind those Liberals opposite what this means. Under the Labor government’s plan, states and territories will be able to provide up to a million public dental services. That is what is at risk here because of the Liberals’ blind obstructionism.

In addition, the government also announced that a portion of the budget surplus would be invested in a new health and hospital fund, the largest Australian investment in health infrastructure ever. The government has built up a strong surplus of $22 billion. But the Liberals have decided to blow a $6 billion hole in that surplus. They are opposing lifting the Medicare levy surcharge threshold to remove a tax slug on families doing it tough. They are siding with the alcohol industry to play cheap politics when it comes to teenage binge drinking. The Liberals are missing out on an opportunity to act responsibly to help curtail binge drinking, especially among young Australians. (Time expired)

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.