Rowan Ramsey (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the National Health Reform Amendment (National Health Performance Authority) Bill 2011. Just before I begin, I am just drawn to comment on the remarks by the member for Fraser, who suggested that the opposition had become a fringe opposition. I suggest he might prevail upon his Prime Minister to call an early election and we might test that opinion in the public arena and see whether in fact the majority of Australians agree with his assessment.

This bill is a demonstration that rhetoric is cheap; action is difficult. Once again we are witnessing the results of 'thought bubble' government. This government has continued to over-promise and under-deliver and this latest agreement on national hospitals is so far away from Kevin Rudd's original plans that it is barely recognisable. We on this side of the House go on almost ad nauseam on the government's failures, but it pays to reiterate them. I am sorry, but you are going to have to wear it again. Policy areas where we have seen backflips and changes of direction include Fuelwatch, GroceryWatch, pink batts, green loans, the NBN, the mining tax, asylum seeker policy—what a debacle that is—the Murray-Darling Basin reform, the live cattle disaster, the ETS and of course now the carbon tax. Paradoxically, the government is failing to deliver on the thought bubble of no carbon tax and they are actually delivering something which they said we would never have. Mr Deputy Speaker, I said this would make you a bit nauseous, a bit sick. It makes me a bit sick and that is without even mentioning the subjects of debt and surplus.

Government members have been on the doors of this place in the last few days telling us that this year, 2011, is the year of delivery for the Gillard government. They are claiming this bill, which is really a humiliating capitulation on health reform, as one of the delivered goods. They are also claiming the national disability insurance scheme as a delivered good. It is a good idea, but it is a long way from being delivered. They say the forestry agreement is a delivered good, when in fact it is wallowing in the Tasmanian parliament again. They say the Malaysian people deal is a delivered good. They say Manus Island is a delivered good. It is far from delivered. In fact, I have even heard the fast train said as being almost a delivered good, and that probably has a 20- to 30-year time frame.

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