SENATOR THE HON KATY GALLAGHER
MINISTER FINANCE
MINISTER FOR WOMEN
MINISTER FOR THE PUBLIC SERVICE
MINISTER FOR GOVERNMENT SERVICES
E&OE TRANSCRIPT
TV INTERVIEW
ABC STATELINE
FRIDAY, 25 APRIL 2025
SUBJECTS: Federal Election; achievements for Canberra; bulk billing; parliamentary career.
GREG JENNETT, HOST: Katy Gallagher, welcome back to Stateline. It seems to me that your candidacy this time around is quite unique because the ACT, either at representative level or at senator level, has never had anyone as senior as you are. But is that a good thing or a bad thing for Canberra voters? In other words, can you point to anything you've achieved, which definitely would not have been were you not in the position you occupy within the Cabinet?
SENATOR THE HON KATY GALLAGHER, MINISTER FOR FINANCE: Well, thanks Greg. Thanks for having me on, nice to be here. Look, I think it's really important to have a senior Canberran at that senior decisionmaking table. This is the first time we've had someone in that role, and I think it does make a difference, and it's hard to separate myself out of that, but just being able to sort of be there as a spokesperson for our city and what decisions mean for our city I think really helps.
JENNETT: So, have you secured anything that is directly attributable to the position you hold? I'm thinking obviously about things like AIS upgrade, convention centre contribution.
GALLAGHER: Well, there's been a lot of work we've done. Obviously, rebuilding the public service, very important for our town. I've been leading that. Making sure we've got, for example, the national security building actually underway and being built. Working with the ACT Government, I think underrecognised as a really important partnership, so, things like light rail, the civic pool, the convention centre, they're all really important. But yeah, the AIS, the national institutions, all of those issues that have been ignored for way too long, and I've brought a Canberra perspective to that. I've brought the nation's capital to the decisionmaking table.
JENNETT: Alright, let's go to bulk billing rates, the other thing you identified. At 53 per cent, the ACT on average is at the back of the pack nationally. And yet as part of your suite of policies, the aim is within five years to get to a national average of 90 per cent. Considering where the ACT starts from, do you concede that this figure is unlikely to be reached? 90 per cent is unlikely to be reached in the ACT.
GALLAGHER: Well, that's the goal that we've got. That's the numbers that support our investment that we've got from the Health department. But we acknowledge that Canberra isn't sitting at the national average now, it's well below that, about 20 percentage points. And so, that's why I've been working with the Health Minister to really identify what further could we do. So, if where tripling the bulk billing rate for concession card holders and young people has increased the bulk billing rate here by about 44,000 extra visits, we are now extending that across the board. So, we would expect to see some change, but we're still so far behind. What else can we do to make sure we are driving or making sure the incentives are there for GPs to consider bulk billing and that's –
JENNETT: But to what end? Is 90 per cent a realistic target in your view for Canberra?
GALLAGHER: I would love to get there, and I think Canberrans would love to get there. I think the fact that we are behind the national average makes that challenging. But unlike – what we've done, and we've done it in other places where it's worked, where you've bought in essentially new bulk billing practices to supplement what's happening here now, has driven bulk billing increases in other places.
JENNETT: You're talking about Urgent Care Clinics and walk-in centres, but the incentive to take a GP practice to 100 per cent, why is that going to resonate with practices here, which are clearly reluctant to go there?
GALLAGHER: Well, on our assessment, there's eight bulk billing practices roughly in the ACT who bulk bill all their patients. I was at one on Monday, talking to them about how it works for them. And we expect with the tripling of the bulk billing rate that that would increase. It would make it business sense wise for GPs, in a number of clinics, to increase to 25, doing that. Obviously, it's a decision for them, but then we've also put on the table $10.5 million to bring in three new bulk billing clinics – that would be a requirement of that grant – from outside Canberra to supplement what's happening here and to essentially drive some competition.
JENNETT: So, do you have modelling on what that would bring the ACT overall average rate to?
GALLAGHER: Well, no, not specifically, in terms of that 90 per cent. The 90 per cent is across the country. But we do recognise, and the Health Minister has recognised that in the ACT, we need to supplement the existing GP workforce, which is something that's affecting bulk billing rates and also people's ability to get into a doctor in a timely way when they want to. And this we believe will provide more choice for patients. It would be a requirement when we go out to tender for these three new clinics – obviously, the Interchange in Tuggeranong is going to remain open and will remain open as a bulk billing clinic – will provide much more opportunity for people who need to get care and need to be bulk billed that opportunity to do so.
JENNETT: Let's finally, Katy, talk about your future. You're seeking a fourth term, that's if we count one of the previous ones as valid, but –
GALLAGHER: Thanks for reminding me, Greg.
JENNETT: Yeah, sure, no problem. Voters willing, how many more do you think you've got left in you?
GALLAGHER: Well, I'm really keen to continue to represent Canberra. I love it. I've dedicated my career to really representing Canberra. And I don't get ahead of myself, I really recognise, you know, it's hard to continue to put yourself out there and to get the support of the community. So, I'd be hoping to get that for this campaign. It feels like I just got here. When you say four terms, it certainly doesn't feel like that to me. It feels like we're just getting started
JENNETT: And there was the accumulation of years in another role down the road, the Assembly too.
GALLAGHER: You're making me sound very old, Greg.
JENNETT: Not meaning to. Katy Gallagher, we'll wrap it up there. You've got a very busy campaign. Best of luck and thanks for joining us on Stateline.
GALLAGHER: Thank you, Greg.
ENDS
