Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

Now I understand the issue more clearly: this is about Senator Cormann trying to explain why the opposition are yet again determined to wreck a critical reform for the country’s future. The reality is that health costs in this country are continuing to rise. The current estimates are that, by around 2045, health costs for each of the states will exceed their own source revenue. This is a critical issue for the nation’s future and you have no answer other than to wreck. On health reform—and the Minister Representing the Minister for Health and Ageing could articulate this in more detail—my recollection is that a COAG agreement, an intergovernmental agreement, is being negotiated. But the reality is—