Anthony Albanese calls for Richard Colbeck to resign or be sacked over 566 aged care deaths | February 3, 2022 | ACM
- 2 years ago
Leader of the Opposition Anthony Albanese called for Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck to resign or be sacked over aged care deaths on Thursday.
There have been 566 deaths from COVID-19 in aged care facilities since the start of the Omicron outbreak.
Mr Albanese said residents - some 15,000 of whom had been infected - were missing out on showers, meals or having their wounds tended to as a quarter of shifts went unfilled due to 17,000 cases among staff.
"This is just an extraordinary response. Is it the suggestion the department was not looking at those issues that they had to set up a task force?" he said.
"A (proper) announcement would be the government saying that they are going to take serious action.
"Instead, what we have is a minister who says there is no crisis and a government that says bureaucrats are going to collect data."
There have been 566 deaths from COVID-19 in aged care facilities since the start of the Omicron outbreak.
Mr Albanese said residents - some 15,000 of whom had been infected - were missing out on showers, meals or having their wounds tended to as a quarter of shifts went unfilled due to 17,000 cases among staff.
"This is just an extraordinary response. Is it the suggestion the department was not looking at those issues that they had to set up a task force?" he said.
"A (proper) announcement would be the government saying that they are going to take serious action.
"Instead, what we have is a minister who says there is no crisis and a government that says bureaucrats are going to collect data."