Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the bill be now read a second time.

This bill delivers on the government's promise to establish an Australian Centre for Disease Control as a statutory agency in my portfolio, to commence on 1 January 2026.

Establishing a transparent, trusted and independent CDC will strengthen Australia's public health capability, improve pandemic preparedness, and safeguard the health and wellbeing of all Australians.

The independent COVID-19 response inquiry supported the establishment of the Australian CDC to address capability gaps identified in the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the COVID-19 inquiry report highlighted, Australia went into the COVID pandemic with no playbook for the pandemic, limited readiness of the National Medical Stockpile, and badly stretched aged- and healthcare systems.

The inquiry report showed gaps in data and data sharing between the Commonwealth government and states and territories, as well as fragmented and outdated planning and preparation for health emergencies.

The COVID-19 response inquiry panel—Robyn Kruk AO, Professor Catherine Bennett and Dr Angela Jackson—warned that we must not let pandemic planning and our public health capability degrade through complacency.

There will be another pandemic—the only question is when—and there continue to be infectious disease outbreaks.

Establishing a permanent Australian CDC through this bill will deliver on our commitment to create an independent agency that will help protect Australia from diseases and public health threats.

It will bring us in line with countries like Canada, the UK, Singapore and most European countries which already have well-established national public health institutes.

We've committed $251.7 million to establish and operate the Australian CDC, as well as ongoing funding of $73.3 million from 2028-29.

The Australian people deserve public health data, insights and advice that is high quality, nationally coordinated and responsive—not just in a crisis, but every day.

The COVID-19 pandemic was a once-in-a-century event, but it will not be the last public health threat that we face.

Climate change, antimicrobial resistance, or AMR, zoonotic spillovers and changing geopolitical tensions impacting on Australia's health security all demand a permanent national public health authority right now.

The bill enshrines the Australian CDC in law as an independent Commonwealth agency, separate from the health department and with transparent functions, obligations and powers.

It will draw on the best technical and scientific expertise across the nation through its national convening role. This will include epidemiologists, data scientists, public health researchers and population health experts.

It will play a national leadership role and become an authoritative source of expertise and evidence in public health, assisting state and territory governments to fulfil their critical roles in times of normality and crisis.

The CDC's advice will help set the national direction on public health priorities, spanning from research through to workforce capability gaps. It will support agencies in the Australian government and the jurisdictions to plan and prepare for future health threats and emergencies. And, over time, its role will expand to include advice on how to prevent other health threats, including non-communicable diseases.

Functions of the Australian CDC

The Australian CDC will provide advice to federal, state and territory ministers on public health matters.

It will also provide evidence based public health information to Commonwealth entities, state and territory government bodies, international agencies and non-government organisations.

The CDC will build awareness among Australians on public health threats and what we can do as individuals and community members to minimise risk of sickness and death.

It will be an authoritative source of public health advice and information for the Australian public and for health professionals across the country.

There will be a phased approach to establishment of the Australian CDC. The standalone CDC will build on all of the achievements of the interim CDC. This bill is the next step in that journey.

The Australian CDC's initial priorities will focus on communicable diseases, pandemic preparedness and existing capabilities in environmental health and occupational respiratory diseases.

To ensure a comprehensive approach to pandemic preparedness and response, progressive expansion into areas such as chronic conditions will be considered following an independent review of the CDC's funding and operations in 2028.

The review will assess the Australian CDC's effectiveness in delivering on its initial priorities and help inform a staged widening of its remit over time.

The Australian CDC's advice won't exist in a vacuum. A core responsibility of the CDC will be to consult widely with experts across public health, relevant clinical groups, and academic experts. This will mean the CDC's advice is grounded in the knowledge of the impacts on people and their livelihoods, linking this with expertise in diseases and the recommended measures to control them. The social, cultural and economic factors that support health equity will be well understood, to ensure that no Australian is left behind.

The CDC will not duplicate what the Australian Government and states and territories already do. Instead, it will enrich our national capacity through high quality, independent advice using enhanced data and evidence so that we can respond faster and smarter to emerging risks.

National collaboration will be a cornerstone for the Australian CDC. The CDC will work together with states and territories, respecting jurisdictional autonomy, fostering relationships based on mutual respect and trust, and tailoring engagement to meet specific needs and priorities and unique local circumstances.

Embedding accountability and transparency

The Australian CDC has clear lines of accountability. The bill establishes a director-general who will lead the Australian CDC and report directly to the minister for health.

He or she will be an expert in public health and ultimately accountable to the parliament through annual reporting requirements, scrutiny by parliamentary committees and budgetary oversight.

The director-general will be supported by an advisory council, who will provide crucial advice on public health matters and on the strategic direction and priorities of the agency. The advisory council will ensure that CDC advice is informed by a wide range of perspectives, insights and expertise so that the Australian CDC operates in the public interest.

The advisory council will be chaired by the director-general.

Advisory council members will be appointed by the minister for their expertise in public health, clinical practice, economics, human rights, data and statistics, emergency management, or communications.

To support progress towards closing the gap, at least one member of the advisory council must be an Aboriginal person or a Torres Strait Islander and must have expertise in the health needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

The CDC will also have partnerships and relationships with many in the public health community.

One of the most powerful messages of the COVID-19 pandemic was that Australians deserve transparency in public-health decision-making. Transparency is key to building and maintaining the trust of the community.

The Australian CDC will be required to publish the advice it provides to governments and decision-makers, to ensure the visibility of its advice in the decision-making process.

This is a strong step towards rebuilding trust with the Australian people on decisions made on public health policies and the evidence behind these decisions. Sometimes evidence is strong; sometimes evidence is ambiguous and only gets clearer with time, but the public deserve the honesty of having this acknowledged and the data explained.

It's something the independent COVID-19 Response Inquiry recommended—and something our government believes is critical.

Our government recognises that public health recommendations and decisions have real impacts on the lives and the wellbeing of individual Australians. The publication requirement will help improve confidence, counter misinformation and disinformation, and give communities and businesses the information they need to act effectively during future crises.

The role of data

At the heart of the Australian CDC is a commitment to using and enhancing the value of data and information. In a crisis, decision-makers need the best available evidence—at jurisdictional and national level—to make decisions quickly.

The COVID-19 response inquiry laid bare some significant shortcomings in our pandemic response. Some key decisions were made without sufficient evidence about risks, benefits, or the wider social and economic impacts. This lack of data undermined the ability of our leaders to respond proportionally at times.

Critically, it was not—and still is not—possible to bring together essential information such as vaccination status, health service utilisation, mortality and key population characteristics with data about who was infected by COVID-19. This bill will close this gap so future decisions are driven by comprehensive, connected data to protect every Australian.

The Australian CDC will deliver a modern approach to national public health data to enable more accurate and faster detection of risks, more consistent responses across borders, and a stronger foundation for national public health planning.

But the CDC won't act alone—Australians expect all levels of government to work together when public health is on the line. That is why this bill streamlines data sharing and authorises linkage across the Commonwealth, and with state and territory governments who choose to do so, to support public health activities.

The bill includes strong safeguards to ensure that any data sharing serves the public interest without compromising privacy. Data functions have been developed using a 'privacy-by-design' approach, which means that privacy and transparency have been considered at every stage of the legislative development process and the operational rollout of the CDC.

Policy development and consultation

The Australian CDC established by this bill is the culmination of more than three years of policy development and public consultation. It delivers a CDC to respond to global health threats, and those already in our backyard. It is a CDC that strengthens Australia and helps us prepare for the future.

In September 2023 the government asked the COVID-19 response inquiry panel to look at Australia's responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The independent panel of experts was asked to consider opportunities for systems to more effectively anticipate, adapt and respond to pandemics. In doing so, they analysed evidence from Australian and international research. They undertook extensive consultation with officials from all levels of government, community groups, industry and business, unions, and experts across a range of fields. They sought public submissions and conducted hearings to learn from the diversity of Australians' experiences during the pandemic.

The inquiry panel was clear in its findings: Australia must never again enter into a public health crisis without a national public health authority or robust data. The report laid bare the costs of fragmented governance, a lack of national leadership, and weak surveillance systems. These shortcomings undermined both public trust and the effectiveness of our national response.

This bill will close those gaps permanently.

The Australian CDC presented in this bill today reflects this extensive consultation process and builds an institution that will have real impact.

Review and evaluation

The government understands the importance of growing the CDC in a sustainable way and monitoring and evaluating its effectiveness as its functions continue to grow.

In addition to the independent review of the Australian CDC's funding and operations in 2028, the government is also committed to ensuring the legislation remains fit for purpose into the future.

A legislated review every five years will provide an opportunity to ensure the act is working as intended to support the CDC's operations, particularly in improving the availability and use of data for public health benefit.

In summary

This bill puts in place an enduring institution to ensure that Australia is better prepared, more united, and more accountable in the face of future public health threats.

This is a pivotal reform that is long overdue—a permanent capability, built on evidence, and grounded in the hard-won lessons of recent years.

We know there will be another pandemic, and the Australian CDC will make sure we are better prepared.

I commend the bill to the chamber.

Debate adjourned.

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