Mike Freelander (Macarthur, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last week, Professor John Skerritt announced his retirement from his position as head of the health products regulation group in the Department of Health and Aged Care. He has worked there for 11 years. He is without doubt one of the finest public servants I have known. He helped Australia get through the pandemic. Before that, he was responsible for the assessment and regulation of all therapeutic goods, drugs, treatments and tests that come into Australia that provide health support for all Australians. We should be grateful for his services. He has regulated all the new immunisations, antiviral products, the tests that have come into Australia that have helped us to get to this stage of the pandemic. He has provided exemplary service. He is a highly qualified scientist, interested in evidence based treatments and management. He is without doubt the one person that I see as responsible for our response to the pandemic at the highest level, as well as to the new innovative treatments that are coming because of genetic technologies and the new biologics in health care in Australia. He is a fine Australian. This parliament should be very, very grateful for his service, and I hope to see him contribute more in the future. Thank you, Professor Skerritt, for your wonderful work and the time you have spent in Australia's health care.