House debates

Tuesday, 26 October 2010

Questions without Notice

Preventative Health

2:50 pm

Photo of Jill HallJill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health and Ageing. What action is the government taking to deliver more preventative health programs? How have these programs been received and what is the government’s response?

Photo of Nicola RoxonNicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | | Hansard source

I thank the member for Shortland for this question. She has always had an active interest in health issues and health promotion within her community. As the Prime Minister mentioned earlier today in question time, the Prime Minister and I joined with a number of members of the Heart Foundation’s walking group, both the Queanbeyan group and the Groovy Grannies, who walk through the ACT to keep themselves fit and healthy. They are one of a number of national organisations that have been funded through our preventative health investments.

There is not just the Heart Foundation. I know there will be many members of this House who are passionate about cycling who would be pleased to know that Cycling Australia with the Amy Gillett Foundation is also being supported with this initiative. Fitness Australia, the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute with their Lift for Life program, the Macarthur Division of General Practice—a couple of members opposite would be particularly interested in that—and Diabetes Australia are all involved in getting the message out across the country that we can do more to manage our own health to keep ourselves fitter, to make sure that we live longer and happier lives and to take some pressure off our health system by making sure that by living healthier lives we do not come down with a number of preventable diseases which put such an enormous burden on our health system.

Today we will be debating again in the House the establishment of the preventative health agency. This agency ought to have been up and running by 1 January this year. Unfortunately, in the last parliament the opposition delayed and opposed this measure, and we hear that despite the calls of public health organisations across the country arguing that this investment should be made the opposition are again positioning themselves to vote against this measure.

Today we met with organisations that covered the whole spectrum: the Heart Foundation, the Cancer Council, the Public Health Association of Australia, VicHealth and Quit—organisations that have committed all of their energy to trying to introduce public health campaigns, better living conditions, better information and desperately see the need for a national agency that can test the best evidence, can better target campaigns and allow us at last to make sure that we invest properly in preventative health.

I call on the Leader of the Opposition and the opposition to reconsider their position on this bill. I know and I must say I have some respect for the fact that the Leader of the Opposition is a bit of a fitness freak himself. He leads and sets a very good example, but not everyone across the country has that same sort of commitment and governments can help others to play a more active role in managing their own health. I will be very disappointed and I know many thousands of Australians will be very disappointed if the Leader of the Opposition allows his party to oppose this measure in the House, when instead what we could do is invest in important health reform that will save lives for many decades to come.