Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Health) Share this | Hansard source

I hear interjections from those on the other side. Quite frankly, I am not sure it is going to make much difference for people whose bodies are already broken at the age of 50. At the age of 50 and 55 there are people out there who have worked hard their whole lives. This is an outrageous measure that should be opposed.

Equally, abolishing the energy supplement, which will leave new pensioners up to $366 a year worse off, is an appalling measure. It shows no regard for our pensioners. It is something that the government should look seriously at. Once again we know that this is not a fair budget. Unlike what the Prime Minister keeps repeating, this is an unfair budget.

What hits pensioners, families and everyone is the continued freeze of the indexation of Medicare. The government would like you to believe that suddenly in this budget they have fixed the Medicare indexation freeze. That is just not true. We know that this freeze will continue for many medical services and allied health services for at least three more years. This is doing damage in my electorate. We know that the out-of-pocket costs are growing. We know that more and more people are struggling to pay to see a doctor. What is the result of that? I have said this over and over in this place. The result is that people do not go and see a doctor. They do not go and see their GP. They do not go and see a specialist. What happens then? What happens is that their condition gets worse and worse and they end up in hospital. Freezing the Medicare rebate and dissuading people from going to see their GPs and getting early intervention will place a much bigger burden on our healthcare system because it will lead people to go to hospital, and that is a much more expensive proposition. I know that the previous Prime Minister, Prime Minister Abbott, and the current Prime Minister probably do not really care about that because they think it is the states' problem, not the Commonwealth's. But anyone who believes in a decent healthcare system should be looking at all levels of our healthcare system and working out how we can prevent people getting sick, because that is what will improve quality of life.

I am running out of time and there is so much to talk about here. There are so many unfair measures in this budget. But I am going to finish on what I think is an appalling omission in this budget, and that is the fact that there is no new funding for infrastructure for South Australia. South Australia is facing difficult times. We are seeing the exit of the automotive industry after the previous Treasurer, Joe Hockey, goaded Holden into leaving this country. This is having a massive impact right around South Australia, but particularly in my electorate, because so many automotive and manufacturing components are manufactured in my electorate. With the exit of Holden, Ford and Toyota, this is a significant issue.

We need real investment in our state from the Commonwealth. We need a true partner in the Commonwealth. That has not been demonstrated in this budget. We have a government that has said: 'Bad luck! We're going to give this money to the eastern states and we're not going to give you one new cent.' I have a long list—and it may not be the same as everyone else's—of major infrastructure that could be funded. Of course, we have AdeLINK. That could be funded with this money. We have the rail extension to Aldinga. That is an excellent project that could have been funded in this budget. We have the dual carriageway upgrade of South Road between Seaford and Aldinga. That could have been a project funded in this budget. There are many, many projects that could have been funded by this Commonwealth government—projects that would not only improve economic development within my state but also provide short-term jobs. But, of course, this government has completely ignored South Australia.

Before we hear the government's usual protest, 'But we're going to support you to build the submarines,' let me say that one policy is not enough. The government was forced into ensuring that South Australia got any work from the submarines. Let's not forget that former Prime Minister Abbott was planning to have the submarines completely built in Japan. That was his plan. We know that. Instead, the government was embarrassed, cajoled and forced by Labor into building them in Australia.

But that work does not start for some time. We are losing jobs now, and we need a government that is going to take that seriously. We need a government that actually has a plan for jobs and infrastructure, and that is something that this government does not have. There is nothing in this budget that shows the government is serious about creating jobs and investing in South Australia. I call on the government, if it is serious about South Australia and serious about the investment, to show us the money. It should show us what it is going to spend on infrastructure projects, because I have a long list and I know every other Labor member in South Australia has too. If those opposite are not sure, I can tell them. On that note, I end my contribution by condemning this unfair budget. (Time expired)

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