Jan McLucas (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Ageing, Disabilities and Carers) Share this | Hansard source

The Labor Party will, of course, support this amendment. The amendment reflects in some respects the recommendation of the Senate inquiry. But for the minister to say that this is the government responding to the sector is a bit rich. It has only been after very strong representations during the inquiry, and then some quite strong correspondence—particularly between Aged Care Queensland and the Aged and Community Services Association, and various senators—that the government has acted. The reality is that if the government had stuck by its 1 April implementation date the investigation principles—the law on which the responsibilities of approved providers would have been based—would not have been in place. We would have been asking people to abide by legislation that they had not seen.

So of course the Labor Party will support the delay of the compulsory reporting requirements until 1 July. We also support the extension of time for the establishment of the commissioner of complaints, although I think we could have actually done that within the appropriate time. But for the government to say that it is being responsive and accepting of commentary from the sector, I think, to be frank, is a bit rich.

I hope that the department uses this opportunity to have conversations with the various police forces that will be involved in the delivery of this legislation. As I said in my speech during the second reading debate, indications at the time of the inquiry were that they had only had time to have conversations with a couple of states and, I think, the ACT. There were questions about the extent and the quality of the conversation that had been had. There is a lot of work to do before this legislation can be enacted properly. We are requiring legal obligations of approved providers of residential aged care and the least we can do is tell them what the rules are before they have to comply.

Question agreed to.