The Hon. Greg Hunt MP
Minister for Health and Aged Care
TRANSCRIPT
21 January 2022
ABC RADIO BRISBANE
WITH CRAIG ZONCA AND LORETTA RYAN
E&OE…
Topics: Rapid Antigen Tests, WA border closures;
CRAIG ZONCA:
So let’s clear up exactly what is going on. Greg Hunt is the Federal Health Minister. Minister, good morning to you.
GREG HUNT:
And good morning to you.
CRAIG ZONCA:
Has your Department, or any Federal Government Department, commandeered rapid antigen tests in Australia?
GREG HUNT:
No. It’s categorically false. It’s a scam.
It’s extraordinary that a Minister in any government would fall for a scam like that. Either they have not done the work to verify that it is false, or it is deliberately made as a statement.
This statement is a simple lie. And we are reporting any case of such claim to the ACCC, which has strong clears powers for false, misleading and deceptive conduct.
CRAIG ZONCA:
I have seen these emails.
GREG HUNT:
And they are like an internet scam.
CRAIG ZONCA:
Are they?
GREG HUNT:
And I am surprised that anybody would take it seriously. It’s a flat plain forgery and lie.
CRAIG ZONCA:
So what’s happening with these rapid antigen tests then?
GREG HUNT:
Look, unfortunately Queensland was late to the party. Others had been in the market early.
And it is challenging right around the world. I was looking at the situation in the UK and the US and the stories in their media about what they call lateral flow devices, which are rapid antigen tests in the UK, rapid antigen tests in the US.
And many suppliers have over-promised. That’s happened in the case of the Commonwealth, the states, the private sector, the community sector. And they’ve made false statements, and they are being reported and have been referred to the ACCC.
So if we can have these statements from the Queensland Government, we will do that. No evidence has been provided. It is a lie.
But what is particularly concerning is all of us have leadership roles, and to seek the truth, to tell the truth, is absolutely, you know, such an important part of building public confidence.
And I understand Queensland was one of the very last to place their orders. And so they need to be careful about making sure they’re dealing with reputable suppliers.
But also, you know, we’ve had other challenges with some of the things they’ve said before, such as when they claimed that the Commonwealth was imposing costs on tests. Again, that collapsed under any investigation. But this is a false claim and it’s wrong.
CRAIG ZONCA:
Well, that went on for weeks.
GREG HUNT:
And everybody knew that the original claim by the Queensland Government was false.
The Queensland people, they’re doing a fantastic job. And 92 per cent vaccination rate, 63.8 per cent of eligible people for boosters.
LORETTA RYAN:
Minister, you mentioned the United Kingdom there. A lot of questions that we get in from listeners is why can’t they be provided to all of us for free, like they’re doing in the United Kingdom?
GREG HUNT:
Well, that’s not correct.
LORETTA RYAN:
Free self-administered rapid antigen tests through the National Health Service over there. Some of them, people can pick them up at libraries, they can order them through a home delivery service.
GREG HUNT:
And they have free testing in their healthcare system, which we also have in Australia. So in Australia, we have free testing in the healthcare system. 59 million tests have been conducted so far.
The rapid antigen tests are being used in other state testing systems for free as we speak. Examples in Victoria just this week, we’ve had 50 per cent of tests in Victoria that have been reported as positive have come from rapid antigen tests in recent days.
And then we have the pensioner’s concession scheme, but the statement that there’s universal access, people buy across the counter in the UK, that’s an important part. But then they also have a parallel scheme to Australia (INAUDIBLE).
But the idea that the Labor Party is proposing of unconstrained, universal free good, whether it was milk, whether it was bread, that would destroy the supply chain and mean that people in hospitals, people in aged care, people in healthcare needs, would not have access to them.
And so that’s why making sure that we have a proper program focused on healthcare, focused on the pensioners and seniors. 6.6 million people who will have access to 66 million tests is so important.
CRAIG ZONCA:
Greg Hunt, the Federal Health Minister, with you on ABC Radio Brisbane.
I just want to get back to this correspondence that the Queensland Government, or Queensland Rail, received about their two shipments that they haven’t received. Are you suggesting that the emails that suppliers have sent are fake?
GREG HUNT:
Whoever has said it is lying.
CRAIG ZONCA:
As simple as that?
GREG HUNT:
It is a categorical lie. The power that’s referred to in that email is a made-up, fabricated power that does not exist. There is no such power. It is a forgery, a fake, a fraud.
I’m a bit surprised that you’ve been taken in. I am astonished that the Queensland Government would pedal a fake, a forgery, a lie, a fix. It is extraordinary.
LORETTA RYAN:
It’s going back and forth now because we’ve had a text.
GREG HUNT:
There is no back and forth.
LORETTA RYAN:
No, we’ve had a text from Mike Bailey to say, he’s tweeted that Queensland Rail provided the evidence last night. So now he’s saying that you’re lying. So it’s just going back and forth.
GREG HUNT:
No, no, let me be very clear. Anything which comes to us which says this goes straight to the ACCC. It is a fraud.
LORETTA RYAN:
Let’s go onto another issue. Last night, the Western Australian Government made the decision to keep its border closed longer. Do you support Premier Mark McGowan’s decision?
GREG HUNT:
Look, this is a matter to Western Australia. I know for many people seeking to reunite, for families who have loved ones, people who may be in the most difficult of circumstances, it’s been a very hard period, and so that will be difficult for them.
It is a matter for Western Australia and for the Western Australian Government to explain. And I think that that’s very, very clear. So, they will go through that.
WA’s vaccination rate is at 94.9 per cent. They will pass that 95 per cent mark, extraordinary mark, in the next 24 hours. Their booster rate, people who are eligible for boosters is at 62.1 per cent of those that are eligible, which is actually above the national average of 60.4 per cent.
So they’re doing a great job. So, there will be disappointment. I respect that it’s a matter for the Western Australian Government to determine and to explain. And we hope that at some point they can be in a position where families can reunite, people can be close.
CRAIG ZONCA:
Greg Hunt, when will people, if they need a RAT test, be able to get one?
GREG HUNT:
Well, there are increasing numbers right around the country. We saw in Victoria this week that they’ve had over seven million arrive, and that’s by the Victorian Government. So they’ve been able to secure significant product.
The Commonwealth has provided already over 6.1 million to aged care, and we’re seeing increasing supplies come into the pharmacies and to the supermarkets. But it is a global challenge, and I think it’s very important to acknowledge that.
CRAIG ZONCA:
Thanks for your time this morning. The Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt joining you on ABC Radio Brisbane.
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