Marielle Smith (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Wong. We know Australians have been facing cost-of-living pressures and that access to affordable health care is a concern. How is the Albanese Labor government strengthening Medicare and making it easier and cheaper to see a doctor?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Smith, thank you for your question. I know that you, Senator Smith, and all of the senators on this side and the whole Labor team understand that the cost of living is the most important issue for Australians at the moment, and that is why it has been front and centre in every budget Labor has delivered. We have been working hard to clean up the Liberals and Nationals' mess, especially in health. We have made the largest investment in Medicare in more than 40 years. We have expanded bulk-billing so it's no longer in freefall so more Australians can see a doctor. We're training more doctors in our cities and in our regions. We've opened 87 urgent care clinics and we've promised to open 50 more. We're making medicines cheaper. We've invested more than half a billion dollars to deliver more choice, lower costs and better health care for Australian women.

What is clear, Senator Smith, is that all of this is at risk under a potential Dutton, Liberal-National government. What is clear is that Mr Dutton would seek to cut so much of this cost-of-living support that the government is providing. We know he's already promised cuts. The shadow Treasurer said on the weekend that they would cut everything they'd opposed in opposition. Senator Hume has confirmed that Labor has spent around $374 billion more than what the Liberals would have. That accounts for all the additional expenditure this term—everything from indexation of pensions to national security and defence spending. But of course they refuse to outline exactly what they'd cut to pay for the $600 billion nuclear scheme. But, if you listen carefully to Mr Dutton, Senator Hume and Mr Taylor, what we know is that those opposite would gut Medicare, wind back Labor's investments in women's health, stop funding urgent care clinics and make it harder and more expensive to see a GP. He cuts; you pay. (Time expired)

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Smith, first supplementary?

Marielle Smith (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last week the Albanese Labor government announced that it is making cheaper medicines even cheaper. Having already slashed the cost of medicines with the largest cut to the cost of medicines in the history of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme in 2023, Labor is now going further, with a script to cost Australians no more than $25 under the PBS. Minister, can you explain why Australians can only trust a Labor government to invest in health, make medicines cheaper and strengthen Medicare?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Why do we know this? Because, as Mr Dutton said, 'Past performance is the best indicator of future practice.' Let's have a look at Mr Dutton's past performance. In 2013 the Liberals promised no cuts to health, and then Mr Dutton cut $50 billion from hospitals. Just months later, as health minister, Mr Dutton tried to introduce a GP tax on every single Australian patient, and, when he couldn't get it through parliament, what did he do? He started a six-year freeze of Medicare rebates—the Dutton Medicare rebate freeze. No wonder doctors voted him the worst health minister in the history of Medicare.

Senator Ruston confirmed, 'We have never said that Australians will get access to free GP services.' She let the cat out of the bag. Mr Dutton and the Liberals can't be trusted with Medicare. (Time expired)

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Marielle Smith, a second supplementary question?

Marielle Smith (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, as you mentioned earlier, the Liberals and Nationals confirmed on the weekend that they plan to cut all of the cost-of-living measures they opposed in this chamber, from cheaper medicines and urgent care clinics to tax cuts for every taxpayer. Can the minister highlight how Labor's cost-of-living relief is helping Australians and what is at risk from promises to cut Labor's measures?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Albanese government have been working to put in place responsible measures to help Australians with the cost of living, and our plan is working. Those opposite—the Liberals and the Nationals—still don't have a plan, and all cost-of-living measures are at risk. And do you know what? Their own party room knows it. Last week a senior Liberal told theAustralian it was unclear what Mr Dutton stood for, while the Liberal MP labelled the shadow Treasurer a dead weight. We saw the dead weight on show in the disastrous interview on Sunday, when he managed not only to confirm they will cut everything that they've opposed but also to contradict Mr Dutton on their divestiture policy. They contradicted Mr Dutton on the citizenship referendum. They made unbelievable claims about the cost of Mr Dutton's nuclear reactors, and he managed to split with the shadow finance minister on public sector cuts. What an extraordinarily bad interview— (Time expired)