Peter Hendy (Eden-Monaro, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health. Will the minister explain how the government is making Medicare sustainable? What support has been received for this approach in the past?

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for his question. I want to pay tribute to the member for Fraser, who, as everybody in this place knows, is the political love child of Bob Hawke and Jenny Macklin. He is a believer in the co-payment, because he wants to make Medicare sustainable, and we pay tribute to him again today. The Labor Party has had him in the witness protection program for the last couple of weeks. Come on down, member for Fraser.

Andrew Leigh (Fraser, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise under standing order 68. The minister is welcome to say what he likes about my comments at university. If he wants to talk about the present, he might focus on what he said last year while campaigning for the election.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The problem with taking that point of order under standing order 68 is that it does not conform with the statement I made to the House. So there is no point of order and the Minister for Health has the call.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just to update the House with words that have been said well after the honourable member left university—

Ms Plibersek interjecting—

If I were Tanya Plibersek, I would not be talking about health—if I were the member for Sydney. She was the worst health minister since Federation!

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. As is ordinarily the case with this minister, he is not referring to members by their title.

Bruce Scott (Maranoa, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is no prelude to a point of order. Just state the point of order.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister should refer to members by their appropriate titles.

Bruce Scott (Maranoa, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Minister for Health will resume the call and will please refer to members by their correct title.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Of course, Madam Speaker. The member for Sydney, of course, presided over one of the most shameful periods in Australian health policy. We will come back to the GP superclinics in time, so do not panic. We will detail more of your successes—open paddocks that exist across Australia, vacant paddocks with patients turning up having read your press releases, but still no clinics are built. Years and years of promises. Labor wasted money. They wasted money and they refused to listen to the wise counsel of the member for Fraser. Bob Hawke promised the Australian people sustainability in Medicare and he said it was required by way of a co-payment. We have listened to that advice. We have looked at the fact that Medicare is unsustainable with an ageing population and with the onset of all of the chronic diseases that will present over the coming decades. We are determined to put more money into Medicare, and we do in this budget.

Ms MacTiernan interjecting—

Bruce Scott (Maranoa, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Perth will desist!

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

If we want to make it sustainable, we have to make sure that the co-payment—$5 of which goes into the Medical Research Fund, $2 of which goes to doctors to help supplement the money they get from Medicare—

Ms MacTiernan interjecting—

Bruce Scott (Maranoa, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Perth is warned!

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That will make Medicare sustainable. We understand that Jenny Macklin, as she then was, was the author of a paper that was relied on by Mr Howard, the then health minister for Bob Hawke. History dictates that we have to do something sensible to reform Medicare, and we do it in this budget. Labor wasted billions of dollars in the Health portfolio. In this budget we provide Australia with a way to strengthen and sustain Medicare for decades to come. We are absolutely determined to clean up Labor's waste and get Medicare and health back on track. We increased hospital funding. We increased funding within the Health portfolio in this budget. We will do it in a way that will set up Medicare for a decade.