David Coleman (Banks, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The member for Aston is commenting on that very substantial increase. This government is spending 37 per cent more than the Labor Party ever spent on assistance to public hospitals. That does not seem to be consistent with the narrative of those opposite, but it has the tremendous virtue of being true. There is a 37 per cent increase in investment in public hospitals.

Let us look at the investment in the PBS. There are sensible changes to the PBS but nonetheless government expenditure on the PBS will be increasing by 10 per cent over the next four years, an average growth rate of about 2.5 per cent. We see incremental money coming in for the medical research fund—going up to $4 billion by 2017-18—and a total annual increase in health expenditure of just over five per cent per year. That is not five per cent going down; that is five per cent going up. But importantly, whilst there is an increase it is an increase which is being managed in the context of a sensible budget, under which we say goodbye to the years of rampant uncontrolled spending and we say, 'How do we as a government sensibly plan to get back on track for a surplus whilst at the same time invest as required in important areas such as health?' It is very important that that narrative is understood. We see investment in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health increasing over the next four years. We see investment in the subsidies to private health insurance going up in the next four years.

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