The new Albanese Labor Government has unveiled its first ministry, and the people who will oversee aged care are already rolling up their sleeves.
Mark Butler (above left), the new Minister for Health and Aged Care, will also serve as Deputy Leader of the House.
“Today I will be writing to the Fair Work Commission to indicate that an Albanese Labor Government will be making a submission on the minimum wage case,” Mr Butler tweeted on 27 May.
“Labor will fix the crisis in aged care and put nurses back into nursing homes,” he said on Twitter on 19 May.
Mr Butler has served eight ministries from 2009 to 2013 under the tumultuous years of Labor Prime Ministers Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard. Most relevant were his appointment as Parliamentary Secretary for Health (2009-2010), Minister for Mental Health and Ageing (2010-2013) and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Mental Health Reform (2011-2013).
His most recent role in Opposition was as Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing from January 2021 until the election.
Mr Butler is married to former SBS, BBC World News and ABC journalist Daniela Ritorto. He has two children from a previous marriage and one with his second wife.
The dedicated Aged Care portfolio, which is outside of Cabinet, has been awarded to Anika Wells MP (above right), who has been a member of the House of Representatives since the 2019 federal election. Ms Wells has a daughter, Celeste, and is the mother of twin boys Ossian and Dashiell.
“I actually worked in aged care when I was putting myself through uni, so I do have some shop floor experience in aged care, albeit that was in the late 2000s. And I’m sure that things look a little bit different now,” she told the Australian Financial Review.
“My mum worked in aged care for more than 10 years before she retired, so there is a bit of family history in the area.”
Additionally, Ged Kearney (pictured), former secretary of the Australian Nursing Federation, will serve as Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care.
Labor pledged $2.5 billion to “fix” aged care, and brought these policies to the Federal Election:
- Registered nurses on site 24/7;
- Every person living in aged care will receive an average of 215 minutes of care daily;
- A Government-funded pay rise for aged care workers;
- Mandatory nutrition standards for aged care operators; and
- Forcing residential care providers to report – in public and in detail – what they are spending money on.
They talk the talk but will they be able to walk the walk?
