Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Aged Care and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 and the Aged Care (Accommodation Payment Security) Levy Amendment Bill 2025 taken in conjunction. With the passage of the Albanese Labor government's Aged Care Act 2024 during the last parliament, the coalition upheld our commitment to a rights based act for older Australians to guarantee a world-class aged care system into the future. Through our persistent negotiations on the act, the coalition achieved significant improvements to the government's proposed reforms that will protect the interests of older Australians and future generations. One of the most critical outcomes of our efforts was the introduction of grandfathering arrangements. These arrangements guarantee that Australians who are already in residential aged care, on a home care package or assessed as to be waiting for their allocated home care package will not see any changes to their existing arrangements. This bill provides for the essential framework to ensure that the 'no worse off' principle can be implemented.

It's no secret that we are the party for hard-working Australians, and that is why we also advocated for a lower taper rate towards care contributions to ensure that those who have worked hard and saved for their retirement are dealt a fairer deal under this government. We doubled down on a fairer deal for all Australians and held the government to account on their commitment to remain the majority funder of aged care. We fought for the maintenance of a lifetime cap on care contributions, and we fought to remove the Labor government's introduction of arbitrary caps on access to cleaning and gardening—a cap the coalition did not want to see implemented during a cost-of-living crisis. This bill removes the ridiculous caps imposed by this Labor government from the primary legislation.

To be clear, the Aged Care Act 2024 was Labor's package of reforms and was not co-designed with the coalition. It is of no surprise that in the first week of the 48th Parliament this government has introduced this bill to amend 325 items of their own legislation that was passed just months ago. That is why we'll be sending this bill to committee to ensure appropriate scrutiny is placed upon the proposed amendments to the Aged Care Act 2024. We remain increasingly concerned and disappointed by the lack of transparency this government has shown to the Australian public throughout their entire process of reform, because 325 changes to their own legislation is not insignificant; 197 repeals to their own legislation is also not insignificant. Many of the changes are a result of the government's lack of consultation with older Australians and the broader aged care sector.

These changes must be scrutinised to ensure that the process of reform can be implemented in the best possible way. But we will not seek to delay the passage of the bill, because Australians deserve better than another broken promise and delay by this Albanese Labor government, which is consistent with what they have been doing. The Albanese Labor government provided their steadfast commitment that they were ready to implement the reforms contained in the new Aged Care Act from 1 July 2025. They promised that the Department of Health and Ageing was ready, that Services Australia was ready—and this bill proves exactly the opposite. This bill proves that the government's decision to vote down all amendments moved by the coalition in relation to transition time lines was nothing more than—guess what?—a political stunt. Without this bill, critical information cannot be shared between government departments to ensure that the reforms can be implemented. Without this bill, elements of the Aged Care Act 2024 cannot be constitutionally enacted. So, how was the government planning to meet its 1 July deadline without passing this bill?

The coalition also continues to call on the government to be transparent and release all the rules associated with the Aged Care Act as soon as possible. Withholding this critical information prevents all stakeholders from being able to understand and prepare for the full impact of the reforms. Again, we remain confused about how there was going to be an ability to deliver the government's aged-care reforms from 1 July when they still have not released all the associated rules. This government lied at the election. They refused to admit that they were not ready to transition the new aged-care reform framework that they have celebrated so loudly. Then they were forced to do an embarrassing backflip on the start date for the reforms following the election. This backflip was necessary only because they refused to listen to the concerns of the aged-care sector and the coalition, creating months of unnecessary stress and uncertainty for older Australians and the aged-care providers who care for them.

The most dangerous part of the government's delay on the aged-care reforms is the impact on older Australians who need essential home care services. Anthony Albanese and his government have abandoned older Australians who need support to stay independent in their own homes. They promised to deliver an additional 83,000 packages from 1 July 2025. But, again, we have a broken promise, leaving more than 87,000 older Australians waiting for a home care package and without the care they deserve.

This is an appalling decision, and the coalition absolutely condemns the government for the skyrocketing waitlist they have overseen and their refusal to provide the promised packages. The waitlist for home care packages has almost tripled in the past two years under Labor's watch. Many vulnerable older Australians are waiting more than a year to access the care they have been assessed as needing. This is nothing but a national crisis. Minister Rae must urgently deliver the promised packages and address this skyrocketing waitlist as a matter of priority, because older Australians deserve access to the care they need in order to stay independent in their homes for longer.

Again, the coalition supports the need for this legislation to deliver on the important changes we fought hard for, for the benefit of hardworking Australians. But we remain extremely disappointed by this government's refusal to listen to aged-care providers and its complete neglect of older Australians who need support to stay in their own homes. That is why we'll be seeking to refer both the Aged Care and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 and the Aged Care (Accommodation Payment Security) Levy Amendment Bill 2025 for Senate inquiries to ensure adequate consultation for the benefit of older Australians who rely on the aged-care sector. The coalition strongly supports all older Australians having access to the care they need and deserve.

Debate adjourned.

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