Western Australia Premier Roger Cook promotes first-time minister to health portfolio

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The health portfolio is widely regarded as one of the most complex and challenging ministries bedevilled with systemic issues and high public expectations. The Premier has made the unusual decision to put first-time minister, Meredith Hammat, into the role but split some of her responsibilities with other ministers in a "team like" approach.

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00:00Side-stepping away from the health portfolio, for a new face to walk straight in.

00:09We've all been waiting for her to join the team.

00:11She's an incredibly effective Member of Parliament.

00:14She's been a great Parliamentary Secretary and I think she has the energy, the intellectual

00:19clout and the discipline to take on those challenges.

00:23First time Minister Meredith Hammett announced as the state's new Health and Mental Health

00:28Minister.

00:29A senior putting in place supports for the huge task ahead.

00:33We know that she's ready for this challenge and we know that we need to continue to bring

00:37a much more team-like approach to the health portfolio.

00:40It's a big portfolio for one single person to manage.

00:43Ms Hammett will be assisted by John Kerry, who's picked up the newly created Health Infrastructure

00:48Portfolio.

00:50Simone McGurk has been assigned Aged Care and Seniors and new Education Minister Sabina

00:55Winton will take on the Preventative Health Portfolio.

00:59This is the first Preventative Health Minister as a specialised portfolio in Australia that

01:04I'm aware of and it's very much welcome.

01:07How they work together remains to be seen and whether there's a leader within that group,

01:11which I would expect would be the Health Minister, and if not then it's the Premier where the

01:17buck will stop.

01:18I will faithfully serve the people of Western Australia.

01:20Ms Hammett was first elected to Parliament in 2021, before then she was Secretary of

01:25Unions WA.

01:26And I can feel your energy!

01:29Current Board Chair of WA's Country Health Service and former Director-General of the

01:34WA Health Department, Dr Neil Fong, is supportive of the appointment.

01:39I believe that workforce is the greatest challenge to having a great healthcare system, so having

01:44some of that experience in working with all the different levels of the Western Australian

01:49health workforce will be very important.

01:51The Government has confirmed Meredith Hammett will be the lead Minister when it comes to

01:56health.

01:57It's unclear how the Department will be structured under the Ministerial Team model, but the

02:01Government says it will have more to say on that in the weeks to come.

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