E&OE TRANSCRIPT
DOORSTOP
GLADSTONE
WEDNESDAY, 21 MARCH 2018
SUBJECT/s: Turnbull’s unfair cuts to hospitals; Labor’s ‘Fix Our Hospitals’ campaign; dividend imputation reforms; Cambridge Analytica; company tax cuts; Gladstone Port Access Road.
ZAC BEERS, LABOR CANDIDATE FOR FLYNN: Good morning, look it's great to be here at the Gladstone Hospital today. I'm joined by Bill Shorten, the Labor Leader and Catherine King, the Shadow Health Minister. Today we've had a look through the Gladstone Hospital and we've had a chat with some of the key leaders here at the hospital about the issues which are affecting health care here in Gladstone and Central Queensland.
It's great to be here because a Labor Government is committed to making sure that health care is a priority for people in regional Queensland. We know that access to quality services, access to quality health care, is one of the biggest challenges for regional Queensland, and it's great to be here today with Catherine and Bill talking about this issue to make sure that the policy a Labor Government takes to the next election, is a policy that makes sure health in regional Queensland is not left behind. We want to make sure people here get a fair go, and that's why we're here today to make sure that we're across the issues so that we're prepared for the next election. I'll hand to Bill.
BILL SHORTEN, LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Good morning everybody. Fantastic to be at the Gladstone Hospital with Catherine King our Shadow Health spokesperson, and Zac Beers, the Labor Candidate for Flynn. Remember that name, Zac Beers. Zac's a local boy, started off working on the tools at QAL, educated himself through university and now he's Labor's candidate for the second time. So he's got the sort of energy I think this region needs.
But we're here today, Zac, Catherine and I, to launch the ‘Fix Our Hospitals’ campaign. Not just in Gladstone, but right across Australia, the hard working frontline staff of our hospitals, men and women I was privileged to meet, they're doing the very best they can but they are being let down by the current government in Canberra.
The current government in Canberra, the Coalition Government, have cut $700 million plus from our hospitals over the next three years. And that's a big number. And what that means is that knee replacements, hip replacements, the number of nurses and doctors we can have working on our front line of medical treatment are just under pressure. In central Queensland alone, where I'm lucky enough to be today, the cuts have seen $6.1 million taken away from a range of hospitals in Rockhampton, Gladstone, and indeed inland at some of the big mining towns. And in Gladstone itself, this means the equivalent of -
JOURNALIST: Sorry, it's just someone's phone is vibrating there.
SHORTEN: Sure. What this means in Gladstone alone is $950,000 in cuts in the next three years. And it's not just the money, it's what that means in the way of services. It means fewer nurses and fewer doctors. It means fewer hip and knee replacement operations. It means the lesser capacity to do the things which people around Australia take for granted.
Central Queensland is going to have a population growth expansion of at least 47,000 people in the next eight years. But unless we properly fund out hospitals, unless we fix our hospitals, it means that people in Gladstone, Rocky and Capricornian Coast are going to have to travel north to Townsville or south to Brisbane to get the sort of care which they should reasonably expect in their own town and their own district.
And it's not just the extra population which requires the fixing of hospitals. It's a well-known fact that in Central Queensland the health outcomes are inferior to other parts of Queensland. Health/life expectancy in Central Queensland is two years less than other parts of Queensland and this isn't fair to Central Queensland. And of course, the longer you have to travel to get treatment, the further you have to go, the more it compromises the quality of health care.
So Zac Beers and I, and Catherine King are saying to Mr Turnbull, let's fix our hospitals. Stop the cuts to Gladstone hospital, stop the cuts to hospitals right across Australia. At the end of the day there's nothing more important to Australians than their health and their family.
Labor is going to make a choice. We could make a choice to have corporate tax cuts for large corporations, or we can make a choice to properly fund our hospitals, to unfreeze the Medicare premiums and to tell the big private health insurance companies to stop increasing your premiums. Labor prioritises the health of Central Queensland and Australians, the other government - the current government, they just prioritise big business.
I might ask Catherine to talk further about our ‘Fix Our Hospitals’ campaign, then we'd be happy to take questions. Thank you.
CATHERINE KING, SHADOW MINISTER FOR HEALTH: Thanks Bill, and look, it's terrific to be back here with Zac. This is my third visit to the Gladstone Hospital and what a difference a Labor Government can make. A $42 million investment in a new emergency department here at Gladstone Hospital which will make a significant difference to the people of Gladstone.
But what doesn’t make a difference and what makes things worse is when you've got a Federal Government, the Turnbull Government who have cut over $700 million over the next three years alone out of our public hospital system.
I don't know if Malcolm Turnbull has actually visited a public hospital emergency department on a Monday, and gets to see just how busy the staff are there, struggling to keep up with the demand in our public hospitals. Malcolm Turnbull having cut $715 million out of public hospitals means that there are less nurses, less capacity to do those vital surgeries for people. Less beds able to be opened in public hospitals across the country.
Our campaign, which I’m very pleased that we're launching here in Gladstone to fix our hospitals is to put pressure on the government to properly fund our hospitals, properly back our nurses, properly back our doctors, so that we can make sure that people are getting the health care that they need.
SHORTEN: Are there any questions?
JOURNALIST: Yes. So just on hospitals, what are you doing for funding - for hospital funding, in Bundaberg? The Palaszczuk Government says it needs a business case before construction can begin, but one has already been done.
SHORTEN: In terms of hospital funding, what Labor's going to do is put more money into the hospital funding than the current government. It's as plain as that. I'll get Catherine to supplement this answer, but there's a big argument going on where the Federal Government says it should fund 45 per cent of hospital funding, and Labor thinks that proportion should probably be higher than that.
So I can make this promise to Queenslanders, and in fact all Australians. Your hospitals will always be better funded under a Federal Labor Government than they will under the Liberals and the Nationals.
In terms of Bundaberg, we'll talk to the Queensland Government about what they're talking about there, but one thing I'm absolutely sure about, this government, the current government has cut $160 million from Queensland Hospitals. It's cut $6.1 million from Central Queensland hospitals. Why should people in regional Queensland have to travel to Brisbane to get the sort of medical care which people in other parts of Australia take for granted. But I might get Catherine to answer a little more.
KING: Thanks, Bill, Bill's exactly right. $715 million cut from recurrent funding for hospitals. There are lots of hospitals in need of capital investment, and again, the Federal Government's 2014 Budget, there was a health and hospitals fund - they cut $1 billion out of that. So for any hospital that wants to have a new big capital build, there is no fund that the Commonwealth has currently because it took all that money away. Now, there are many hospitals with needs across the community, Bundaberg is one, and we'll be happy to talk to the Queensland Government about any commitments that they need in relation to that.
JOURNALIST: Mr Shorten, is it feasible to exempt some low income pensioners from your tax policy?
SHORTEN: What Labor's determined to do is to clamp down on unaffordable loop holes which see people who pay no income tax getting a tax refund. We're the only country in the world which has that system. So what we want to do is make sure that the government has enough money to pay for hospitals, to pay for education. Our population is getting older, and whilst we grow older, need health services more than ever. I am committed to making sure that all Australians, regardless of their age or circumstances, can get reasonable health care. We should be pushing for nothing less than that.
In terms of pensioners, I give this promise too: pensioners will always be better off under a Labor Government. We're always working on ways to make sure that the least well off and our older Australians, get the best deal possible, and so we'll have more to say about that in coming weeks.
JOURNALIST: Mr Shorten, what concerns do you have that Australians might have been caught up in having their data mined by Cambridge Analytica?
SHORTEN: That's a great question, well so were the other two. Listen, the internet is a marvellous thing, but it can also have a real downside and the idea that you can have ruthless conservative political operatives invading people's privacy to manipulate elections and outcomes is outrageous. Labor has already said we'll have nothing to do with the company or the practices which are being spoken about and causing such concern. Facebook's fantastic. Millions of Australians are on Facebook. It should be a way where individuals can communicate with their family and friends, and other individuals. But it shouldn't be a source of inviting corporate manipulation into people's households through the sort of trap door of your Facebook account.
JOURNALIST: Mr Shorten when will you release costings on this retiree tax?
SHORTEN: We've had our work done by the PBO just like the Government. We put forward the findings, everything we're doing is consistent with the practices that the government have.
JOURNALIST: Have you overestimated the revenue on this crackdown?
SHORTEN: We've got out revenue sources from the PBO, the Parliamentary Budget Office, an independent body which both sides of politics have relied upon. But let's go to the heart of the matter: There has been a practice created in Australia where you can pay no income tax but actually get a tax refund. Now, that isn't fair. I think Mr Turnbull has to explain to Australians why does he think that it is fair that millionaires and multi-millionaires can receive literally tens of thousands of dollars, in some cases, hundreds of thousands of dollar or more of taxpayer money for paying no income tax. How is it fair that seven million Australians on less than $87,000 a year have to pay income tax on the money they pay but don't get a tax refund when they pay no income tax. This is not fair.
Now of course when it comes to the issue of pensioners and part-pensioners, Labor has always been the party who has stood up for them. It was Mr Turnbull who has thrown has nearly 100,000 aged pensioners off the pension. It was Mr Turnbull who threw about 270,000 part-pensioners, down the part-pension payments they got. Unfortunately, it is Mr Turnbull who wants us to have the world's oldest retirement age, who has frozen Medicare payments which see the out-of-pocket payments for pensioners going up and up and up. And we all know the debacle which is energy prices in this country.
So I say to pensioners and part-pensioners in Australia, all 2.5 million of you: Labor is the party who has stood up against cuts and attacks of your conditions and we will always stand up for our pensioners.
JOURNALIST: How is it fair -
SHORTEN: Sorry, I'll come back to you and then I promise, I'll come back to you.
JOURNALIST: Just a quick question for Mr Beers. Zac, you couldn't get it done the last two Federal Elections, what do you think the difference between then and now is - sorry, then and when the next election will be held?
BEERS: Certainly, the last election was fought on some key issues here in Central Queensland, there's no secret about that. We talked about the risk to education cuts, the risk to health cuts under a Turnbull Government. And what we are talking about here today is the reality of those cuts. We've seen reductions in funding here at the Gladstone Hospital, cuts to funding and what that means is fewer opportunities in terms of improving health care outcomes.
Going to the next election, these are the issues we are going to be talking about. We've also seen a significant shift since the last election on the industrial relations front. Here in Central Queensland, we're seeing an incredible rise in the misuse of labour hire, in employees approaching agreement terminations to reduce terms and conditions for workers.
The reality is that people in Central Queensland are under attack. We have got a Turnbull Government who is sitting on the sidelines saying, move along, nothing to see here. Those are the issues I am going to be talking about at the next election and certainly, between now and then, my intention is to spend every day I can out on the ground, talking to people about the issues that matter to them. Just like we did last night at the town hall, and just like Bill has been doing right across the country. Our focus is on making we sure we take policies to the next election that mean something for people, not policies that means something for big business.
JOURNALIST: Mr Shorten, do you think you're on a winner here?
SHORTEN: With Zac Beers? Absolutely. I don't know what the bookmakers have got Zac at but I would get on him if you're looking for a sure-thing. And when I say that, in all seriousness, Zac is of the region and he has got the energy to make his mark in Canberra.
Central Queensland has been ignored by the current government. I don't think my opponent has even been here since the last election. So, he can find Gladstone on a map when he wants your vote, but he can't find time in his diary to come and visit in between. I think I even caught up with some of you last month down at the port when I announced our commitment to the second stage of the Port Access Road. I don't need a GPS to find Gladstone because I come here a lot.
But what I've got in Zac is an energetic candidate. And when I say energetic, he gets that cost of living is a big issue for working and middle class families in Gladstone, and Biloela, Calliope and the other parts of the electorate of Flynn. He understands that energy prices are too high, he understands that the cost of private health insurance is too high. He understands that wages are flat lining, and he understands that the Turnbull Government is giving tax cuts to millionaires, yet increasing the income tax paid by people under less than $87,000 a year. He gets it. What we need in Australia is people who are not in it for themselves, we need politicians who actually want to look after the people. That's what he'll do.
JOURNALIST: Mr Shorten, would Labor back a disallowance motion on the Coalitions plans for marine park changes?
SHORTEN: I think the Coalition's plans are very ill-advised. Hopefully the Coalition will see sense on this. Our marine parks are an important part of Australia’s future. I mean, we're all just passing through. Be it as parents and grandparents, be it as people in work places and business, be it as political leaders. What we have to do is leave this place better than we found it. We want to leave our kids better off than the deal we got from our parents, and we want to leave our environment better off so we're not handing on a worst problem for our kids. I just wish the Coalition Government would stand up for our environment, just for once.
JOURNALIST: Mr Shorten, last time you were here you committed $100 million towards the second stage of the Port Access Road. The Federal Government today is announcing the funds towards a feasibility study for it. The last study that was done showed that it was unviable until 2032. How can you commit funds when you don't even know how much it costs?
SHORTEN: Well there goes the Government. They're the mirror men of Australian politics. They're always looking into it aren't they.
JOURNALIST: Isn't that what Labor did over Rookwood?
SHORTEN: I'll just answer your first question. The LNP are the mirror men of Australian politics. They're always looking into it. They always think - when they see an issue about jobs, or infrastructure, or hospitals, or schools, or labour hire, or wages, they always say we'll have a look at it. These people are the band-aid kings, they're always putting a band-aid on an issue to get them past the next crisis. I'm different, Labor's different.
We know that the Port of Gladstone is one of the key economic advantages of Gladstone. If you can move cargo into Gladstone and into the region, and if you can move cargo out of the region through Gladstone Port, you don't have to pay for the truck movements down to Toowoomba and across the ranges to Brisbane Port, it decreases the cost of doing business. I am unashamedly a backer of more infrastructure for Gladstone, and anyone who talks to any business in the area knows, that improving the Port Access Road will deliver economic benefits not just for the present, but for the future.
And you kindly mentioned Rookwood Weir. You know, you're right actually. There can be some criticism that both sides of politics have talked too long about Rookwood Weir, but you can't say that anymore about us, can you. You know, and I think you were at the interview I did back in January or February when I was last here, that Labor will commit the $176 million to partner with the Palaszczuk Government to open up the agricultural opportunities of the lower Fitzroy. The time for talk is over. The time for feasibility studies just ad nauseum, enough is enough.
I might just take two of three more questions because commercial planes wait for no-one.
JOURNALIST: Is this $100 million cash splash though just to try and secure a spot for Zac Beers here finally?
SHORTEN: No, I think part of the challenge with politics is we've got to beat back some of the cynicism. If I was up here talking about the internal instability of the LNP, you could probably chip me for that because people are sick of the politicians talking about the politicians. But when I talk about funding infrastructure, that's about jobs in the region. Another good part of our announcement for the $100 million, is I am a proudly buy local man. I want to see of that Commonwealth contract, priority going to local contractors. The men and women and small businesses who have the graters and the dozers and the compactors. The men and women who are coming off the resources development and construction in Darwin, are coming back to the area and looking for where their next job is. The fact that Zac Beers is for blue-collar workers just shows that he's in touch with the real world.
JOURNALIST: Just on company tax cuts. With Pauline Hanson flagging she'll support the Government will you be lobbying other crossbenchers or One Nation to reject it?
SHORTEN: There she goes again, Pauline Hanson, just another vote for the LNP. You can rip off the badge of One Nation. They're voting record with the LNP is very high, I think there might even be National Party MPs who have voted less with the government than Pauline Hanson.
JOURNALIST: The Victorian Ombudsmen has released a scathing report finding the Victorian Labor Party and 21of its State MPs cheated the tax payer out of more than $387,000 during the 2014 election campaign. What's your reaction to that?
SHORTEN: Very serious matter. It's obviously to do with the State Government and I'm sure Premier Andrews and the State Government will explain a response to this most serious matter.
JOURNALIST: Just finally, have you spoken to James Packer, apparently he's resigned from Crown Board for mental health reasons?
SHORTEN: No, I hadn't heard that. Anyone who has mental health problems has my sympathy. And what I would just say to families who've got a family member dealing with mental health, just ask for help. There's no rule book on dealing with it, and I just say to familes, and there will be families of people watching this interview. If you've got someone who's living with mental health illness, it's not something to be ashamed of. It affects a lot of Australians as we've heard, even rich and powerful people like James Packer. I would just say to people, seek assistance.
Thank you very much. Cheers.
ENDS
