Achievements

Strong South Australian Advocacy

  1. Subs/Shipbuilding
  2. Protecting SA federal revenue base
  3. Murray Darling Basin/Great Australian Bight
  4. Secured funding for $68m Proton Therapy Centre and recent exchange rate protection coverage ($8m-$10m)
  5. Secured funding for SA cancer genomics program
  6. $60m to restart apprenticeship mentoring program (particular focus on SA motor trades via MTA SA)
  7. $100m Auto manufacturing innovation fund SA/Vic 
  8. Extra $40m for road funding
  9. Extra $424m to SA schools via Gonski 2.0
  10. Developed proposal and secured funding for a SA Independent Medical Research Institute (SAiGEN)
  11. Secured significant ongoing federal funding for SA universities and an additional 12,000 places.
  12. Secured funding for a Palliative Care navigator pilot in SA

Health/Aged

  1. Secured inquiries into: 
    1. Private health insurance and out-of-pocket costs
    2. Price regulation associated with the Prostheses List Framework
    3. Aged Care quality and accreditation (Oakden)
    4. FASD
    5. Autism
  2. Advocacy on prostheses list reforms led to new agreement with industry and $1b+ in device savings, resulting in lower PHI premium rises
  3. Ongoing push for medical transparency and accountability. COAG health transparency reforms, which all states have agreed to progress, on public disclosure of clinician and hospital/clinic performance (long term project)
  4. Advocacy on Oakden leading to substantial changes to the provision of aged care and ultimately the Royal Commission in Aged Care Quality and Safety
  5. Extensive use of Estimates to highlight rampant overcharging by after-hours medical services. DoH changed process/payments. 
  6. Introduced bills on Aged Care staffing
  7. Secured national rollout of Garvan cancer programme: Secured $50m federal funding (matched by philanthropic donors and industry) to help launch $150m national genomic cancer medicine program for rare and less common cancers and to identify young people at risk
  8. $80m funding for the formation of SAiGEN Cancer Institute
  9. $25m funding for public and health professional FASD education
  10. Introduced IVF bill and secured public clinic disclosure alongside a predictor tool
  11. Aged Care amendments to mandate financial and staff disclosure (blocked by One Nation and Liberals, but ongoing in new bill)
  12. Extensive use of Estimates to challenge home care package payment process which resulted in Government substantial changing provider payment system from effectively an honour system to arrears on actual (bill introduced)
  13. Introduced a medical transparency bill that enables the Minister for Health to declare which surgical categories will be required to disclose surgeon performance data
  14. Secured support and funding for a $15m hi-tech genomics hub
  15. Secured support and funding for a Palliative Care navigator pilot in SA

Small-Medium Business

  1. Negotiated tax cuts for small-medium businesses
  2. Negotiated $60m Apprenticeship Mentoring program
  3. Instigated ACCC Digital Platforms (Facebook/Google) Inquiry 
  4. $60m Regional and Small Publishers Innovation Fund for regional cadetships, scholarships and to assist publishers to adapt to evolving media environment
  5. Strongly advocated and supported treasury laws to combat illegal phoenixing  

Government/Corporations

  1. Government procurement guideline changes – now need to comply with Australian standards, demonstrate local content and $4m+ projects must consider economic benefit of local procurement
  2. Whistle-blower protections for the private sector

Migrants and immigration

  1. Supported medevac bill and blocked repeal (subsequently repealed due to Jacqui Lambie)
  2. Blocked punitive citizenship test legislation
  3. Strong advocacy for increased business migration
  4. Blocked punitive action to remove mobile phones from refugees/asylum seekers

Public

  1. Carly’s Law – protection from online predators
  2. Outlawed non-consensual intimate image sharing
  3. Expansion of pension loans scheme
  4. Gold card benefits for nuclear test veterans
  5. Stopped cosmetic testing on animals
  6. Pet food Inquiry
  7. Supported low-medium income tax cuts
  8. Secured ban on synthetic lotteries (e.g. Lottoland) in Australia
  9. Supported tax reforms that generated immediate savings for low-medium income earners
  10. Negotiated significant energy reforms to impact power prices (gas reservation east coast)
  11. Superannuation reforms (fees/insurance)
  12. Introduced SPAM Bill covering unsolicited political calls and charity opt-out
  13. Introduced Payday Lender Bill
  14. Introduced Aged Care Financial Transparency Bill
  15. Secured Senate and Government support to review Australian Classification Board child abuse materials, which resulted in the review and withdrawal of titles that contained child abuse material.