Wednesday, 29 July 2026

 Melissa HORNE (Williamstown – Minister for Ports and Freight, Minister for Health Infrastructure, Minister for Prevention of Family Violence) (11:24): Under the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006, I table a statement of compatibility:

In accordance with section 28 of the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (the Charter), I make this Statement of Compatibility with respect to the Safe Patient Care (Nurse to Patient and Midwife to Patient Ratios) Amendment Bill 2026 (the Bill).

In my opinion, the Bill, as introduced to the Legislative Assembly, is compatible with human rights as set out in the Charter. I base my opinion on the reasons outlined in this statement.

Overview

The purpose of the Bill is to amend the Safe Patient Care (Nurse to Patient and Midwife to Patient Ratios Act ‍2015 (the Act) to categorise and recategorise certain hospitals for the purposes of nurse to patient and midwife to patient ratios, with which the operators of certain publicly funded health facilities must comply.

Human Rights Issues

The Bill promotes the following human rights protected by the Charter:

• The right to life (section 9 of the Charter); and

• The right to protection of families and children (section 17 of the Charter).

Right to life (section 9 of the Charter)

Section 9 of the Charter provides that every person has the right to life and has the right not to be arbitrarily deprived of life.

Clause 4 will improve nurse to patient ratios that apply to hospitals by recategorising 24 hospitals to a higher level.

Clause 6 will improve nurse to patient ratios that apply to hospitals with emergency departments by recategorising 11 hospitals to a higher level. Four hospitals with emergency departments will be newly categorised to ensure that the nurse-to-patient ratios are mandated.

Recategorising these hospitals to a higher level will result in an increase of nurse to patient and midwife to patient ratios. This will ensure safe and quality patient care and as a result, will promote the right to life of the patients receiving care in Victorian hospitals.

The protection of families and children (section 17 of the Charter)

Section 17(1) of the Charter recognises that the families are the fundamental group unit of society and that families are entitled to be protected by society and the State.

Section 17(2) of the Charter provides that every child has the right, without discrimination, to protection as is in their best interests, in recognition of a child’s special vulnerability because of their age.

Clauses 4 and 5 of the Bill improve nurse and midwife to patient care in antenatal and postnatal wards of prescribed hospitals. Requiring more hospitals to have a higher patient to nurse and patient to midwife ratio will ensure that babies, mothers and pregnant mothers receive a high quality of care by improving opportunities for dedicated patient care and as a result will promote the protection of families and children.

Other potential rights invoked

The right to equality (section 8 of the Charter)

Section 8(3) of the Charter provides that every person is equal before the law and is entitled to equal protection of the law without discrimination and the right to equal and effective protection against discrimination. The recategorisation of Victorian hospitals will differentiate between patients in different hospital settings, and the ratios required for their care. This may invoke the protected attributes of ‘disability’ and ‘pregnancy’ under the Equal Opportunity Act 2010 and therefore engage the right to equality and non-discrimination. However, distinguishing the level of care owed to a patient based on their setting in a hospital is reasonable and justified because patients with different illnesses and conditions require varying levels of care depending upon their clinical acuity and the associated treatment necessary to appropriately manage their illness or condition.

For the reasons outlined it is my view that the Bill is compatible with the Charter.

The Hon. Melissa Horne MP

Minister for Health Infrastructure

Minister for Ports and Freight

Minister for Prevention of Family Violence

 Melissa HORNE (Williamstown – Minister for Ports and Freight, Minister for Health Infrastructure, Minister for Prevention of Family Violence) (11:24): Under the Statewide Treaty Act ‍2025, I table a statement of treaty compatibility:

1.   In accordance with section 66 of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025 (Statewide Treaty Act), I table a statement of Treaty compatibility for the Safe Patient Care (Nurse to Patient and Midwife to Patient Ratios) Amendment Bill 2026 (the Bill).

2.   The First Peoples’ Assembly was not given an opportunity to advise on and did not make representations on the Bill, based on my understanding that it is unlikely to have a significant impact on First Peoples or Statewide Treaty.

3.   In my opinion, the Bill is compatible with the matters set out in section 66(3)(d) of the Statewide Treaty Act. I base my opinion on the reasons outlined in this statement.

Overview of the Bill

4.   The Safe Patient Care (Nurse to Patient and Midwife to Patient Ratios) Act 2015 (the Act) mandates minimum nursing and midwifery ratios across all public hospitals based on clinical settings and shifts. The categories underpinning these ratios have not been updated to reflect the growing capacity and complexity of our hospital system, with hospital categories not reviewed since 2000.

5.   The Victorian Government committed before the 2018 and 2022 elections to finalising a review of these categories. The Department of Health completed this in 2025 through the Hospital Classification Review (HCR).

6.   The main purpose of the Bill is to amend the Act so that the hospital categories in schedules 1 and 3 of the Act are updated to reflect contemporary hospital capacity and complexity.

7.   The Bill will amend hospital categories in the Act to determine the minimum nursing and midwifery staffing ratios that apply at all Victorian public hospitals based on clinical setting and shift:

7.1 Schedule 1 categories apply to hospitals with general medical or surgical wards.

7.2 Schedule 3 categories apply to hospitals with emergency departments.

Consultation with the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl

8.   Due to the recent establishment of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Gellung Warl, it was not possible to give the First Peoples’ Assembly the opportunity to advise on the Bill or for them to otherwise make representations about the effect of the Bill on First Peoples.

Compatibility of the Bill with each of the objects in section 66(3)(d) of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025

9.   I have considered whether the Bill is compatible with the objects at section 66(3)(d) of the Statewide Treaty Act 2025:

9.1 advancing the inherent rights and self‑determination of First Peoples; and

9.2 addressing the unacceptable disadvantage inflicted on First Peoples by the historic wrongs and ongoing injustices of colonisation; and

9.3 ensuring the equal enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms by First Peoples.

10.   I acknowledge the historical and contemporary health system injustices experienced by First Peoples, including the high rates of hospitalisation compared to non–First Peoples. The updated classification of hospitals will broadly benefit the care received by First Peoples, through increased staffing levels of nurses and midwives.

11.   In my opinion, the Bill does not in its terms deal with First Peoples, nor is it expected that any aspects of the Bill will, in practice, have a differential effect on First Peoples.

Conclusion

12.   Accordingly, in my opinion, for the reasons stated above, the Bill is compatible with each of the objects in section 66(3)(d)(i)–(iii) of the Statewide Treaty Act.

The Hon. Melissa Horne MP

Minister for Health Infrastructure

Minister for Ports and Freight

Minister for Prevention of Family Violence

 Melissa HORNE (Williamstown – Minister for Ports and Freight, Minister for Health Infrastructure, Minister for Prevention of Family Violence) (11:25): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I ask that my second-reading speech be incorporated into Hansard.

Incorporated speech as follows:

This Bill delivers on the Government’s previous commitment to undertake a review of hospital categories and further strengthens and protects nurse-to-patient and midwife-to-patient ratios.

The nursing and midwifery workforce plays a crucial role in our healthcare system, providing safe, high-quality, person-centred care across hospitals to Victorians at all stages of life.

Since its introduction in 2015, the Safe Patient Care (Nurse to Patient and Midwife to Patient Ratios) Act ‍2015 (the Act) has established minimum staffing requirements and supported the delivery of safe, high-quality care in Victorian public hospitals.

Hospital categorisations reflected in the Act were first established over 25 years ago in the Nurses and Midwives (Victorian Public Sector) (Single Interest Employers) Enterprise Agreement 2000–2004, to mandate minimum nursing and midwifery staffing ratios, and have remained largely unchanged since then.

The Hospital Classification Review was conducted to develop a contemporary approach to assess a hospital’s workload and determine appropriate staffing requirements.

The amended categorisation of hospitals into the Schedules, as proposed by the Bill, has been informed by way of algorithms using publicly available datasets common across Victorian public health services. Two algorithms apply to Schedule 1, one each for speciality and non-specialty hospitals, and a third algorithm applies to Schedule 3, for hospitals with emergency departments.

These algorithms are contained within the Hospital Classification Review algorithms document dated 26 June 2025, which is publicly available on the Department of Health’s website. This Bill is the result of the inaugural review referred to in that document. The Allan Labor Government is committed to reviewing the categorisation of hospitals by the application of these algorithms on a biennial basis.

This Bill will update the hospital categories in accordance with the review findings. By aligning staffing levels with a hospital’s capacity and complexity, this will improve patient safety and the overall quality of care. Furthermore, it will significantly improve workloads for nurses and midwives across the Victorian public health system.

This Bill will ensure that ratios keep pace with the times, by reflecting current patient workload and therefore staffing requirements to support safe workloads for our valued nurses and midwives and enable better conditions and service in our hospitals.

This amendment will update the list of hospitals in Schedule 1 and Schedule 3 of the Act and result in 26 hospitals being recategorised to a higher level. These services will be mandated via the Act to adhere to increased staffing ratios due to the complexity of current operations.

A phased approach to implementation will occur to enable health services to incrementally adjust to increased staffing requirements, while also enabling appropriate training for graduate nurses who can support the uplift needed.

The uplift will start with general medical or surgical wards in the 2027/28 financial year, emergency departments in the 2028/29 financial year and then intensive care units in the 2029/30 financial year.

In total this update will mandate an overall staffing uplift of over 260 additional full-time equivalent nurses in the public health system. It will support our hardworking nurses and midwives and give them more support on the ground with better conditions and ensure Victoria’s public hospitals can continue to provide safe and high-quality care for all Victorians.

I commend the Bill to the house.

 James NEWBURY (Brighton) (11:25): I move:

That the debate be adjourned.

Motion agreed to and debate adjourned.

Ordered that debate be adjourned for two weeks. Debate adjourned until Wednesday 12 August.