Election 2022 LIVE updates: US wanted Labor briefed on AUKUS deal earlier; Scott Morrison, Anthony Albanese continue campaigns across the nation
Key posts
- Labor promises almost $1 billion more for Medicare ahead of election
- Biden wanted bipartisan support before signing AUKUS, Labor not told for months
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Labor promises almost $1 billion more for Medicare ahead of election
Anthony Albanese is promising almost $1 billion in new Medicare funding if Labor wins next weekend’s federal election.
The Labor pledge is made up of $750 million over three years through a new Strengthening Medicare Fund, along with $220 million in grants of up to $50,000 for GPs to train staff, buy equipment, improve ventilation and upgrade IT telehealth systems.
Labor leader Anthony Albanese.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
Australian Medical Association (AMA) president Dr Omar Khorshid said the Labor funding would “put general practice on a pathway to a more sustainable future” after the Coalition declined to fund its own 10-year primary health plan, including voluntary practice enrolment.
Under the new system, called MyGP, patients who enrol with a single practice could eventually be able to access extra services – such as wound dressings, physiotherapy and mental health support – on site and coordinated by their GP.
“Australians trust their GPs. It’s a vital relationship in ensuring all Australians get the quality healthcare they deserve,” Albanese said ahead of Saturday’s announcement.
Biden wanted bipartisan support before signing AUKUS, Labor not told for months
The Biden administration insisted from the outset that it would only consider pursuing the landmark AUKUS project if it had solid support from both major Australian political parties, yet Prime Minister Scott Morrison chose not to consult Labor until the day before its announcement.
White House officials emphasised the point as a deal-breaker in the very first discussion on Australia’s request for nuclear-propelled submarines. The AUKUS security pact between Australia, the US and UK was signed in September.
Scott Morrison with US President Joe Biden in New York after the AUKUS partnership was announced in September.Credit:AP
The prime minister sent a special emissary, Australia’s spy chief Andrew Shearer, to broach the topic with two senior officials, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and the White House US Indo-Pacific Co-Ordinator, Kurt Campbell on May 1 last year.
“We asked lots of questions about politics,” said Campbell in an interview. “Would this be contentious? Would this hold?”
Bipartisan political commitment from Labor and Liberal was a prerequisite, the Americans said.
“This would be a military marriage. It would have to hold over decades.”
When asked why he had decided not to consult Labor over AUKUS until the last minute, Morrison told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age: “I believed the Labor party would support it.” He was proved right.
Morrison and officials briefed Labor leader Anthony Albanese and the Labor leadership the day before the planned announcement.
This morning’s headlines at a glance
Good morning and thanks for your company.
It’s Saturday, May 14. I’m Ashleigh McMillan and I’ll be anchoring our live coverage of the election campaign for the first half of the day. Just one week remains until election day.
Here’s what you need to know before we get started.
- The Biden administration insisted from the outset that it would only consider pursuing the landmark AUKUS project – the security pact between Australia, the UK and the US – if it had solid support from both major Australian political parties, yet Prime Minister Scott Morrison chose not to consult Labor until the day before its announcement.
- Anthony Albanese is promising almost $1 billion in new Medicare funding if Labor wins next weekend’s federal election, saying, “Australians trust their GPs. It’s a vital relationship in ensuring all Australians get the quality healthcare they deserve”. Under the plan, patients will get extra services if they enrol with a single GP practice.
- Prime Minister Scott Morrison will announce on Saturday financial support for 700,000 children to play sport, as part of a $20 million plan to expand a sport program to high school students in year 9 and year 10 via national sporting organisations, including Netball Australia, AFL and Cricket Australia.
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