Ms PLIBERSEK (Sydney—Minister for Health) (14:10):I thank the member for Petrie for her question. She is a member who is passionately committed to seeing better health services for people in her electorate. She knows every taxpayers' dollar we raise has to be spent in the best and most effective way. I welcome the passing through the House of Representatives of the Fairer Private Health Insurance Incentives Bill and cognate bills this morning. The passing of this legislation comes as new figures released by the Private Health Insurance Administration Council show that more Australians are covered by private health insurance now than at any other time in the past 36 years. Opposition members interjecting— The SPEAKER: Order! Ms PLIBERSEK: Since this government came to office, more than a million people— Opposition members interjecting— The SPEAKER: Order! Minister, please pause. The House will return to order and the minister will be heard in silence. Ms PLIBERSEK: Thank you, Mr Speaker. More than a million people have joined private health insurance since this government came to office. These new figures for last year show that the industry recorded a record profit of $461 million before tax for the December quarter and that the year's profit from December 2010 to December 2011 was a record $1.27 billion. The industry is strong and the industry is healthy and the industry will stay strong despite the scare campaign of those opposite. You would remember that the member for North Sydney said in 2008 that hundreds of thousands of people would drop out of private health insurance, when Labor took a decision that low-income earners should not be penalised for not having private health insurance. He said that hundreds of thousands would drop out. And what happened? 800,000 extra people have joined private health insurance since that time. He was wrong then and he is wrong now. This is a win for low- and middle-income earners. Mr Christensen interjecting— Ms PLIBERSEK: It means that the bank teller on $50,000 a year will no longer subsidise the private health insurance— The SPEAKER: The minister will pause. I have asked all honourable members to hear the minister in silence. The honourable member for Dawson will remove himself from the chamber under the provisions of standing order 94(a) for one hour. The member for Dawson then left the chamber. Ms PLIBERSEK: It means that the bank teller on $50,000 a year will no longer subsidise the private health insurance of the bank executive on $500,000 and the bank's CEO on $5 million— Mr Laming: What a load of rubbish! The SPEAKER: Order! The minister will pause. The honourable member for Bowman will also leave the chamber under the provisions of standing order 94(a). He is fortunate that I have not named him for defying the chair. The member for Bowman then left the chamber. Ms PLIBERSEK: This government is investing record amounts into our health system. That record investment needs to be targeted in a way that makes the biggest difference. The private health insurance rebate would have sucked up $100 billion over the next 40 years. The Leader of the Opposition says that he is going to restore that, when he can, as an article of faith of the opposition. Is it really an article of faith to spend the hard-earned tax dollars of ordinary Australians subsidising his private health insurance and mine, or is it an aspiration? (Time expired)