SUBJECTS: Royal Flying Doctor Service; Labor’s announcement of $15 million to rebuild RFDS Tasmania; failures of the Morrison Government during COVID-19; school reopening; kids’ vaccinations; Labor’s policy agenda; rapid antigen tests; Federal election; Tasmania; women in sport; Ash Barty; Sam Kerr.
 
JOHN KIRWIN, CEO OF ROYAL FLYING DOCTOR SERVICE TASMANIA: Welcome, everyone. And I would just like to start with an acknowledge of country. I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of land that we're meeting on, and the elders past, present and emerging. It is just important to understand from an RFDS perspective, we have a National Reconciliation Action Plan. And in Tasmania, for example, 24 per cent of our dental patients, seen in areas like the dental truck, identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. So, we have a real commitment to closing the gap in that area. I'd like to introduce the Candidate for Bass, Ross Hart.
 
ROSS HART, LABOR CANDIDATE FOR BASS: Thank you, John. Thank you for the opportunity to be here today. A very warm welcome to my colleague, Brian Mitchell, the Member for Lyons, and also Anthony Albanese, the Federal Labor Leader, the Leader of the Opposition. Welcome him here again to Northern Tasmania. Anthony has demonstrated over the years a great fondness and commitment to Tasmania. His understanding of Tasmanian issues has been demonstrated time and time again. And this announcement is vitally important, particularly for the health of Tasmanians broadly. We know that Tasmanians are sicker, older, suffering from more chronic health conditions. And this commitment is an important commitment towards the healthcare of Tasmanians. Tasmanians as a group but specifically those within the electorate of Lyons and Northern Tasmania. I welcome Anthony here to Northern Tasmania, and in particular to Launceston Airport and to the RFDS. Thank you, Anthony.
 
ANTHONY ALBANESE, LEADER OF THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY: Well, thanks very much, Ross. It's great to be back in Tassie with yourself and Brian Mitchell, our fantastic Member for Lyons. And it's great also to be here with such a positive announcement. I want to thank John for the welcome of the Royal Flying Doctor Service here this morning. This is an important announcement. Because where we are right now is just one of the facilities in which currently the Royal Flying Doctor Service operates across three separate facilities that isn't fit-for-purpose. One of the things we've been reminded of during this pandemic is the importance of services like this. This upgrade that I'm announcing today, a $15 million commitment to rebuild and rehouse the Royal Flying Doctor Service here in Launceston at the airport, will transform the service delivery and the capacity of the Royal Flying Doctor Service here in Tasmania to service all Tasmanians, whether they be the three islands that it services to the north, or the entire mainland of Tasmania. It is critical that we have a service that's able to put fixed wing aircraft, to put rotator aircraft, to put ambulance services, and to put the sort of facilities to deliver healthcare on the spot in a way that is undercover in one building in order to improve that service delivery. And that is what this $15 million commitment from Federal Labor will do. And I want to thank Ross and Brian and the other parts of the Tasmanian Labor team for campaigning so strongly to get this commitment from Federal Labor. It's a commitment that will be included in our very first budget. And it's a commitment that we will get done. I'm very proud of being the Minister for Transport when we delivered a major upgrade to the headquarters where it all began, the Royal Flying Doctor Service in Broken Hill in western New South Wales and to have visited that facility there. But this facility here provides a vital service for Tasmania, as we can see here. It delivers not only care during acute times, including during the pandemic, but also delivers basic health services and dental services around Tasmania, particularly in areas that are located away from the big two cities, Hobart and Launceston. So, this is a vital announcement. It will, of course, create jobs in the short-term in construction. We will have a state of the art facility that will be able to provide that service for years and decades to come. So, I'm very pleased with this announcement. And I look forward to it being included in our first budget and then watching it and coming back as it is constructed. It'll be constructed on the site just next to us here. And the plans are all ready to go. The costings have been done. I look forward to seeing it realised. Happy to take questions.
 
JOURNALIST: Will that cover the full cost of the proposed development?
 
ALBANESE: No, it will cover the full cost of the development. One of the things that we know is that the Royal Flying Doctor Service do a lot of fundraising themselves. We heard that this morning. So, what we want to do is to be able to cover the full capital costs. I believe it is a Commonwealth responsibility. And that is why we will deliver the full costs.
 
JOURNALIST: If this proposed development does go ahead, when are you hoping construction will be completed?
 
ALBANESE: Well, we will include it in our first budget. And it will be included and provided to the service. The Royal Flying Doctor Service have a track record of being able to get things done. And I'm certain that in terms of the timeframe that they'll get done. Of course, it will require the approvals to go through the processes for any major development, particularly at the airport. But of course, airports are federally leased. So, that will assist with that process.
 
JOURNALIST: You said it will provide state of the art services. What are those services?
 
ALBANESE: The services include being able to have, instead of the personnel being across three buildings as they are at the moment, being in one. Having rotary and fixed wing aircraft in the one location. Enabling surge workforce to be located here as well. We've seen that during the pandemic that a surge workforce has been required. But we know during natural disasters, such as fires, that can be required as well. It will allow ground vehicle transfers to occur so that it can all occur on the spot. And that will make a major difference to put the ambulance service personnel with the RFDS personnel in one location being able to deliver that service.
 
JOURNALIST: Why aren't the current facilities fit-for-purpose?
 
ALBANESE: Because they are located across three buildings. That means that the services can't be provided in a way that's appropriate. It can't also house helicopters, basically, choppers. It also has difficulty with locating things inside, undercover, because it's just inadequate. The Royal Flying Doctor Service has grown in terms of the services that it offers. And it requires a capital upgrade. It's been required for a little while now. We've heard the call. And we've answered it. Because the Royal Flying Doctor Service is a quality organisation that is supported by Australians. And the Australian Government should provide it with support.
 
JOURNALIST: Do you think Tasmania opened its borders too early?
 
ALBANESE: Look, I've supported the decision by all state governments, whether they be Tasmania here or other state governments. And they've all done their best to take health advice and to take appropriate action. Tasmania, of course, had its borders closed, I will recall, back for an extensive period of time in 2020 and again in 2021. So, Tasmania has now opened up. I haven't played the game that Scott Morrison has of being critical of one side of politics in terms of state governments depending upon their political colour. What I have done is provide support to all state governments when they made these decisions based upon health advice.
 
JOURNALIST: So, you don't think it was too early?
 
ALBANESE: I respect the decisions that state governments have done. And I think one of the things that we need from the national Government is to bring state governments together. I would like to see more commonality in the response. But that's been something that has happened that the Prime Minister in the National Cabinet has presided over with state governments essentially making their own decisions based upon their own advice. And I respect the decision. And I'm not here to criticise the Tasmanian State Government. I wish them well. There are major challenges ahead for the health system here. I know that's the case. There are major challenges, as well, for the aged care system that is causing major concern. And of course, today, as well, the reports about the chaos and shambles that is occurring for the rollout of the 5- to 11-year-old vaccinations, which indicate that children just won't be able to be fully vaccinated by the time that school goes back, is of concern. Those plans should have been put in place by the national Government through the processes to enable that to occur safely.
 
JOURNALIST: So, do you think the return to school should have been put on hold for primary school students so we could wait until they were double vaccinated?
 
ALBANESE: Well, I think the Federal Government should have anticipated the issues that it was warned about for a long period of time. There remain major shortages of rapid antigen tests. And later today, we'll be visiting a chemist after this and talking to them about the problems that have been there with regard to accessing rapid antigen tests. Now, national governments in the United States, in Singapore, in the United Kingdom, in Europe, all ensured that their populations could have access to rapid antigen tests. They purchased, en masse, for a small portion of the costs for which people are being charged now for rapid antigen tests. But this Government simply didn't prepare properly. It didn't prepare properly. And as a result, we're seeing booster shot appointments being deferred. We're seeing appointments for children to receive their vaccinations being deferred. And that's causing anxiety amongst parents who are worried about their kids going back to school if they haven't been vaccinated. And they're worried about other kids being at the school who aren't vaccinated as well. We're seeing a range of problems which arise from the fact that this Government once again was too slow, and its action was too little and too late. It was warned many months ago that we needed to have access to rapid antigen tests, that there would be problems with the supply chain. But here we are in the third year of the pandemic. We have aged care centres that are closing so that people can't have access to see their loved ones. We have childcare centres which are closing. We have supermarkets that don't have food on the shelves for people to buy, the essentials of life, meat and vegetables. We have major issues as a direct result of this Government's complacency, of Scott Morrison having a view that everything was not a race and that he didn't have to put in place those measures.
 
JOURNALIST: How important is Tasmania for winning the election?
 
ALBANESE: Well, Tasmania is always important. But the whole of Australia is important. But I tell you what's important, as well, is quality. And I want Ross Hart back as part of my team to join Brian, who's here with us today. Ross Hart was an outstanding member while he was there as the Member for Bass. He made a contribution. And he wants to make a contribution again. And I certainly encouraged him to nominate to once again be the Member for Bass. Because at the moment, the Member for Bass themselves seems to not have confidence in the Morrison Government. And it needs someone who will actually be able to deliver for this electorate. Ross Hart will.
 
JOURNALIST: Will we be seeing more of you in Bass and Braddon in the upcoming months?
 
ALBANESE: You will. I have visited Bass and Braddon a number of times last year. And every opportunity I have, I will be here. This is my second visit to Northern Tasmania in the last month. And I'll continue to come. I was here in December. I'll be back again. I had the opportunity to drive right around Tasmania on a road trip where with Brian I've been to just about every part of his electorate of Lyons as well. But I've been a regular visitor to Tasmania, not just during election campaigns. That's the difference. I come here and have been coming here for two decades on a regular basis. And I've been delivering over that two decades some major upgrades to the Midland Highway, major upgrades to infrastructure to the Bass Highway, major upgrades to the rail system with the Rail Revitalisation Plan, upgrades to Burnie Port, a range of facilities, including, of course, the upgrade to Bellerive Oval. I was quite pleased that upgrade, including the lighting, which was a part of the last time we're in Government, enabled Tasmania to have a day/night test. And to have a very successful test, it must be said, just a little while ago.
 
While we're on sport, I might just take the opportunity to add that Ash Barty continues her progress through the Australian Open as a great champion and the world number one. And I look forward to continuing to watch Ash progress. But overnight as well, the contribution of Sam Kerr, who became Australian soccer's leading goal scorer, a major achievement, overtaking Timmy Cahill, who has played for the Marrickville Red Devils for a while, my local club where my son played. And Timmy is a great Australian, a great role model, who came down and talked to the kids while my son was playing for the team. Sam Kerr is a great role model as well. She's outstanding. And she will continue to develop as one of the greatest footballers, I think, of all time. And being able to score five goals in order to take the record overnight in the Asian Cup, in which the Matildas are competing and doing very well in, is a great achievement. So, well done, Sam Kerr. Thanks.
 
BRIAN MITCHELL, MEMBER FOR LYONS: Can I just say a couple of words? This is unplanned and unscripted. John Kirwans is the CEO of the RFDS. And he retires in July. John's taken the RFDS from a very small three-person operation into an operation now that's around 40 people, from a fundraising organisation in Tasmania into an organisation that provides critical primary care, particularly throughout regional Tasmania and my electorate. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank John for his incredible service over many years to public health and to health services, particularly in regional Tasmania. And it's our job now to get a Labor Government elected to deliver on this commitment to the RFDS which will be a terrific legacy for John and your leadership. So, thank you, John.
 
ENDS