Coronavirus: Scott Morrison has Richard Colbeck’s back as sacking calls increase

Scott Morrison has defended his embattled frontbencher Richard Colbeck as pressure mounts on the Prime Minister to sack him.

Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck. Picture: Getty Images

Scott Morrison has defended Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck as demands grow for the Prime Minister to sack him over his handling of coronavirus outbreaks in the sector.

Mr Morrison fired back at renewed attacks from Labor in question time, declaring Senator Colbeck’s successful response had meant that 97 per cent of nursing homes across the nation had not experienced an outbreak.

“The Minister for Aged Care over these many months has been responsible for the outcomes that I have referred to earlier, which has seen Australia in a position where 97 per cent of facilities in this country (don’t have COVID-19), despite the significant community outbreak in ­Victoria.”

The Australian on Tuesday reported that Health Minister Greg Hunt and not Senator Colbeck would have the ultimate say if and when an aged care emergency ­response operations centre — to suppress outbreaks in nursing homes — was ­mobilised.

In question time in the upper house on Tuesday, Senator Colbeck dealt with claims he had been “sidelined” from the decision-making process to activate the new response measures. “I was well aware of all the decisions made by respect to the formation of a recovery centre,” he said.

Labor peppered the government with questions on the crisis throughout question time, devoting every question to its handling of the coronavirus at aged-care facilities in their electorates.

Victorian Labor MP Daniel Mulino called on Mr Morrison to explain why he didn’t have a plan to stop tragedies such as that at Kalyna Care nursing home in Melbourne’s northwest where a 95-year-old woman, who later died, had ants crawling from her operation wounds.

Mr Morrison conceded that the centre was one of four-aged care facilities he had already apologised for where outcomes were “simply not acceptable.”

He levelled blame at Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, saying Labor leader Anthony Albanese had a “blind spot” on the fact the quantity of aged-care outbreaks was linked to high rates of community transmission in the state.