Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Northern Australia) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to contribute to this debate—again, another speech on aged care because it has been such a major issue confronting not just Victoria but our whole country in recent months. I have to say that I was disappointed to hear from Senator Van a continuation of the failure to take responsibility that we have seen from Minister Colbeck and from the Prime Minister himself. Not a single person in this government seems willing to take responsibility for the aged-care failures that we have seen in his country, particularly but not only in Victoria, over the last few months.

It could not be any clearer that aged care is a federal responsibility. The federal government fund aged care. The federal government regulate aged care, or they're supposed to regulate aged care. Yet, despite that, they continue to avoid taking responsibility for what we have seen occur in our aged-care facilities. They will find anyone else to blame. Their preferred target is Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. They will also blame—

Senator Van interjecting—