I also rise this afternoon to speak on the member for Mayo's motion calling for a minister for older Australians. Ensuring dignity, respect and care for older Australians is an important issue for me and for all members of the Albanese government. It's reflected in my regular seniors' forums, the production of and contributions that are made to my seniors guides, and my interactions with the many active organisations in which older Canberrans do so much great volunteering work right across the territory. It's crucial that we listen to and engage with our older Australians right across the country.

The Albanese Labor government has worked hard to improve the quality of life for older Australians, particularly those in need of care. We've put nurses back into nursing homes, given residents more time with their carers, lifted wages in the sector and improved transparency and accountability.

Since the October 2022-23 budget, total investment in older Australians in aged care has increased by 30 per cent. This includes an investment of more than $11 billion to deliver the largest one-off increase to aged-care wages in history, with more increases to come in the future. We continue to enhance the capability of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, to ensure older Australians are in safe and quality aged care; to upgrade technology systems, to make the new Aged Care Act possible; and to provide an additional 24,100 home-care packages to shorten average waiting times, giving older Australians the ability to stay at home for longer.

The new rights based Aged Care Act is a once-in-a-generation reform that will put older people at the centre of the aged-care system and ensure those who access government funded aged-care services are treated with respect and have the quality of life they deserve. It will also support the government's response to the Aged Care Taskforce.

The Albanese government is ensuring our national aged-care system has a world-class regulator, to meet the challenges facing the sector both now and into the future. We've accepted all 32 recommendations of the final Report of the independent capability review of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, with a number of recommendations already complete.

Older Australians are some of the highest users of PBS medicines and so have seen some of the largest benefits from the Albanese government's commitment to cheaper medicines. In 2022-23, over 60 per cent of total PBS expenditure went towards older Australians, while close to 240,000 older Australians in residential aged-care received more than 10.7 million PBS-subsidised prescriptions through 2023. We're also investing more than $300 million over five years to strengthen pharmacy and keep medicines cheaper, with a freeze of up to five years on the cost of PBS prescriptions for pensioners and Commonwealth seniors health card holders, so medicines stay cheaper instead of rising each year with inflation, benefiting people in residential aged-care homes in particular.

The Albanese government has already implemented its five aged-care election commitments, including 24/7 nursing, a record $11.3 billion pay rise for aged-care workers and increased transparency through Dollars to Care. We've also addressed 69 royal commission recommendations, and our work is having a tangible impact. Since the election of the Albanese government, older Australians are receiving an additional 2.16 million care-minutes every single day. There has also been a reduction in the number of pressure injuries, and in physical restraints, significant unplanned weight-loss and falls, while we're also seeing improvements in the star-ratings data, with fewer one- and two-star ratings and more four- and five-star ratings. I list these achievements and important undertakings of the Albanese Labor government, as they highlight that we don't just need a dedicated minister for older Australians; we actually need a government that is ready to invest the time and money to ensure that older Australians enjoy the dignity and respect they deserve.

We have some great champions for older Australians in Ministers Wells and Butler, who are determined to reform aged care and restore dignity to older Australians, and I thank them for their important work and thank the member for Mayo for moving this motion. I also thank the many people right across this chamber who are working with their older constituents to ensure that they have a voice in every part of policymaking that occurs through this parliament.