Senator Colbeck said he had “continued to work assiduously and pay attention to the elements that require attention” in the aged care sector while at a three-day Ashes Test, as Omicron outbreaks swept through thousands of aged care facilities. auspol
Aged Care Services Minister Richard Colbeck says he “continued to pay attention to aged care” while at a three-day Ashes Test as Omicron swept through the sector, saying he stands by his decision to attend.
Aged Care Services Minister Richard Colbeck has defended his decision to go to the cricket while Omicron spread.Senator Colbeck said there were other parliamentarians at the Test that day, naming fellow Tasmanian, opposition agriculture spokesperson Julie Collins, who he said had left Labor leader Anthony Albanese’s regional tour of Queensland “to ensure that she could be at the cricket”.
Tasmanian independent senator Jacqui Lambie blasted Senator Colbeck for telling the committee he could not attend the hearing on January 14 because he did not want to “divert resources” from the government’s Omicron response, asking if he “wasn’t truthful” and “would rather go to the cricket and drink frothies”.
Senator Gallagher asked the minister if he accepted the residential aged care system “is in complete crisis?”“I know it is certainly working very, very hard to manage the impacts, particularly of the Omicron outbreak. My view, and the data supports that, is that the sector is performing and has performed exceptionally well in the work that it’s doing.”