Jackie Kelly (Lindsay, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Minister for Health and Ageing. Would the minister inform the House how the federal government is supporting the delivery of public hospital services in New South Wales and Queensland? Are there any alternative policies?

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Lindsay for her question. I note that the New South Wales government has only been able to open a GP after-hours clinic at Nepean Hospital because of the strong support of the federal government, including financial assistance that was obtained because of lobbying by, amongst other people, the member for Lindsay. Under the current Australian health care agreements, the Howard government will provide some $14 billion towards the funding of public hospitals in New South Wales, and that is a 16 per cent real increase over the previous agreement. As well, between 2006 and 2008, thanks to the GST, New South Wales will enjoy a revenue windfall of almost $2 billion.

Despite all this federal assistance, New South Wales public hospitals are still underperforming for one fundamental reason—namely, a lack of investment by the New South Wales government. In each of the five years to 2002, the Carr-Iemma government provided less money to public hospitals than in 1997. In 1997 the Carr-Iemma government provided $2.66 billion. It was less than that in each of the next five years and it was just $2.59 billion in 2002. And over the last few months the New South Wales government claims to have taken thousands of people off elective surgery waiting lists, not by doing more surgery but by extending the admission timetables from six months to 12 months in an absolutely shameless bit of pre-election fiddling.

But New South Wales is not the only state Labor government to run hospitals poorly. I am quoting now from a newspaper report which said that senior doctors at three of Queensland’s biggest public hospitals warned that ‘patients would continue to die while the government ignored pleas to solve the state’s health crisis’. That comes from the front page of the Courier-Mail in November 1994, when the Leader of the Opposition had already been the de facto Premier for five years. He can turn around but he cannot run from the hard questions about his own record. Why was it that public hospital funding per head was the lowest in Australia under the Rudd Christian socialist government of Queensland? Why was it that, under the gentleman opposite, 2,200 public hospital beds were closed? He has perfect recall of the events of 35 years ago, but challenge him on his own political record and all we get is bluster and changing the subject. Today he might have had Madam Muck asking the questions, but Mr Clean wrote them, and what we have had from members opposite for the last three or four questions is nothing but ‘Rudd mud’, authored, written and authorised by none other than the Leader of the Opposition. There is a clear message here.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise on a point of order, Mr Speaker, concerning standing order 64.

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will refer to members by their title or their seat. I have been listening carefully. If I find that he is not doing that, I will pull him up for it.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I simply make the point that, whether it is state Labor or federal Labor, when it comes to health you just cannot trust the Labor Party. I think that the Australian public are going to get a clear message in the run-up to the next election: don’t let the Leader of the Opposition wreck Medicare the way he wrecked the Queensland public hospital system.