Anthony Albanese pledges support for Royal Commission recommendations – but election two years away
You can read the full transcript of Mr Albanese’s speech here
The Labor leader borrowed heavily from the Royal Commission’s Interim Report in a speech to the Queensland Media Club yesterday, labelling the aged care system “broken” – but conceding his Party has also dropped the ball on the sector.
“For too long governments have turned a blind eye. It is a collective failure.” “There has been a lack of reform and investment in aged care – in both home care and residential aged care.”
Ahead of Friday’s Royal Commission hearing on the future of the workforce, Mr Albanese said part of the answer to the crisis lies in aged care staff (see the graphic from his Twitter account above), promising staffing numbers, qualifications, skills mix and experience would be one of the priority tasks for Jobs and Skills Australia under a Labor Government. There is an obvious catch, however. Australia won’t head to the polls until May 2022 – over two years away – a fact that was acknowledged by Mr Albanese.
“It [the Government] must act on the Royal Commission recommendations,” he concluded.
We recently asked the Minister for Aged Care Senator Richard Colbeck if the Government supported Commissioner Lynelle Briggs’ comments that the system must change radically within the next five years. While there was no acknowledgement of the comments, the Minister said he is looking forward to hearing about the outcomes from the Royal Commission’s upcoming workshops and hearings that will explore the Commissioners’ vision for aged care.
“The Royal Commission’s interim report is clear,” he said. “As a country, the Government, the Aged Care Sector and the entire Australian community, we can and must do better in providing improved support for our older Australians.” “We recognise that changes will be needed, and we look forward to receiving the Royal Commission’s final report on 12 November 2020.”
Regardless of which party is in power, any implementation of the Royal Commission’s recommendations will require bipartisan support. Yesterday’s speech suggests that is one step closer. You can read the full transcript of Mr Albanese’s speech here.
