Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is obvious to any sensible health worker and any person that understands the modern world that Australia should be doing more to respond to this Ebola crisis. It is in our urgent national interest that we do so, as the member for Ballarat said in her opening remarks.

A couple of facts about Ebola up front: firstly, the treatment for Ebola is actually to let the body fight the disease. Like a bad case of the flu, it is a case of resting, recuperating and letting the body's immune system fight the disease. Secondly, contracting the disease is not like the flu where it can be transmitted through the air; it would be a case of bodily fluid transmitting the Ebola from one person to the other. So unless you are around and treating a person and you do not have the appropriate protective clothing, there is almost no chance that you would receive this disease.

The world knew about this outbreak at the end of 2013. We knew it was having an impact on Australian government matters as early as March this year. We had a notification that somebody in Africa could not go to an Ebola area to investigate a visa. The government has had plenty of time to prepare an appropriate response. Sadly, the member for Banks touched on the fact that he was a bit surprised that we were not bipartisan on this. Well, the government's response was basically to send cash and do nothing. It is hard to be bipartisan about doing nothing. We expect Australia to step up. We are a middle to large power in the context of the nations of the world and we have a lot of African citizens in Australia who have been lobbying me about this and its impact on their communities. We do need to do more. The simple things we can do, like sending people to Africa who can educate and manage the response to people that are affected by Ebola early rather than later, can be very effective.

Obviously it is distressing for anyone if they are put in a situation where their immune system is unable to successfully fight the disease and they are going to die. Dying in isolation is not something we would wish upon anybody. But obviously letting someone die in their community where the disease can then be spread because of their condition and the treatment of the fluids is problematic. So we do need to educate people.

Interestingly, we have been asked strenuously by many countries including the US and the UK to assist. The US has sent 3,000 military personnel off. The United Kingdom, France, China and even Cuba have sent off people to combat this disease because they understand that it is better to cut it off early rather than later. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Ebola could reach as many as 1.4 million people by early 2015. We need to work now. We need to send our skilled personnel that can work in logistics and, obviously, health professionals as well. The World Health Organization said it wants 50 Ebola treatment centres so that the disease can be contained.

Sadly, those opposite, the government, have taken the same approach to Ebola as they have to climate change—like direct action but it is neither direct nor involving acting. They are basically saying, 'We do not have to worry about it; it is not going to affect us at all.' The reality is: waiting for it to be on our borders will be way too late. The member for Banks said that nobody has a monopoly on caring. But he needs to understand that caring involves doing. The dollars committed are a good start but we have expertise in managing hospitals and responses to diseases. Training can be given to any normal GP or nurse to have them ready and able to combat disease in Africa rather than waiting to treat it on our borders with Papua New Guinea or Indonesia or somewhere else in Asia when it comes close, especially in these days of international travel.

We saw in Senate estimates that we are not quite ready to fight Ebola on our borders and that is why we should be going to the source of this disease and doing what we can. We have people ready, willing and all but able—with a little bit of training—to combat this disease and I would hope that the Prime Minister would be facilitating that. (Time expired)

See this speech in context