Payroll tax
Jess WILSON (Kew) (14:06): My question is to the Minister for Health. Dr Anita Muñoz, chair of the Victoria Council of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, told the media yesterday in relation to the impact of the government’s new tax that up to 30 per cent of general practices within our state will close and that going forward there will be significant out-of-pocket expenses added to every single medical service that is delivered by GPs. Why is the government forcing the closure of 30 per cent of Victoria’s GP clinics?
Members interjecting.
The SPEAKER: Order! The Assistant Treasurer will come to order.
Mary-Anne THOMAS (Macedon – Leader of the House, Minister for Health, Minister for Health Infrastructure, Minister for Medical Research) (14:06): I welcome the question from the member for Kew, and I make the point, as I have made on each consecutive day of this week’s sitting, that the real challenge that faces primary care and has been acknowledged by both Dr Muñoz from the RACGP, from the AMA, and from other spokespeople for general practice, has been the failure of the federal governments to properly fund Medicare.
James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, on relevance, the minister knows not to debate the question. I would ask you to bring the minister back to the question.
The SPEAKER: The minister was being relevant to the question that was asked.
Mary-Anne THOMAS: Further, I make the point – and I will make it again, because apparently it would seem that those on the other side will simply not hear what they do not want to hear – the only place currently in Victoria that you can be guaranteed access to free primary care is at a priority primary care centre, 100 per cent funded by a state Labor government. Once again, this tax – we have been through this ad infinitum – there has been no change to the way in which payroll tax legislation operates in this state.
Jess WILSON (Kew) (14:08): Dr Muñoz told the media yesterday in relation to the new tax that this will mean the instant closure of some practices because they will be rendered insolvent, and with those that survive the loss of bulk-billing, there is no way they will be able to absorb the cost and pay that tax. Is the minister saying that Dr Muñoz and Dr Hussain are wrong?
Members interjecting.
The SPEAKER: Member for Eureka!
Mary-Anne THOMAS (Macedon – Leader of the House, Minister for Health, Minister for Health Infrastructure, Minister for Medical Research) (14:09): I will make the point once again: there have been no changes made to the arrangements that are in place for the collection of payroll tax right across Victoria. Indeed the Treasurer and I met with Dr Anita Muñoz. We met with her at her request and those of others. The Treasurer and I sat down. The question that we were asked at the time was clarification into the way in which these arrangements worked for general practice, and that was provided.