Jim Molan (NSW, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

We have taken responsibility. We have acted. We will continue to act, and we will act effectively. From day one, based on our record—and our record is known—we will be accountable. We will not smear and we will not lie. What we've seen in the last few days is a game of numbers that is a disgrace to those who have suffered in aged care or anywhere else with COVID-19. Perfection might be something which exists in the world opposite, but, in the real world in which we live, let's look at how we compare.

Of course every death in Australia due to COVID-19, including the deaths of older Australians in residential aged care, is a tragedy. I extend my deepest sympathy and condolences to the families and carers of those who have died. I also acknowledge the extraordinary work that's been put in by the workers—the dedicated aged-care workforce who turn up, work and face extraordinarily confronting situations each and every day. But—and this is an important point—during the COVID-19 pandemic, no country has been able to avoid outbreaks or deaths in residential aged care when there has been widespread community transmission, as we saw in Premier Dan Andrews's Victoria.

I totally reject the assertion that Australia has a high death rate in residential aged care by international comparisons. In actual fact, the contrary is true. Of course that doesn't detract from the tragedy of every death. I know that the opposition does not like facts, but these are the facts. Australia's overall COVID death rate as a proportion of cases is around 2.1 per cent, compared to 13.1 per cent in the UK, and 3.2 per cent in the USA. The death rate in aged care across Australia as a proportion of total aged-care residents is around 0.18 per cent, or 1.2 per cent in a thousand, compared to 5.3 per cent in the UK, where there have been nearly 20,000 deaths. These are the facts. The opposition has been playing some fun catch-me-out mathematical game for a week or so. These are the mathematical facts: in the UK, of the 9,081 care homes included in a recent study, 56 per cent reported at least one confirmed case of coronavirus among the staff or residents, compared to 7.7 per cent in Australian aged-care homes. Nationally, there have been 25,053 cases of COVID-19, including 525 deaths. Of those deaths, 342 have been aged-care recipients: 335 in residential care and seven in home care. This represents a national crude case fatality rate of 2.1 per cent and a per capita death rate of two per 100,000 of population. Globally, there is a crude case fatality rate of 3.7 per cent, whereas Australia's crude case fatality rate is comparatively lower at 2.1 per cent. By comparison, the crude case fatality rate in the United Kingdom is 13.1 per cent; in the United States, it's 3.2 per cent; and in Canada, it's 7.4 per cent.

We have taken responsibility. We have acted. We will continue to act, and we will act effectively—as we have from day one, based on our record. We will be accountable, without smearing or lying. (Time expired)