{"id":310548,"date":"2026-01-29T23:07:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T23:07:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/310548\/"},"modified":"2026-01-29T23:07:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T23:07:11","slug":"federal-politics-live-thriving-kids-start-date-to-be-delayed-health-minister-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/310548\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal politics live: Thriving Kids start date to be delayed, health minister says"},"content":{"rendered":"

10m agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 10:56pm<\/p>\n

Hospital funding \u2014 who is fighting about what?\"Holly<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lot of chatter about hospital funding<\/b> today. Namely, who should fork out for what, and when.<\/p>\n

While the states hold responsibility for running our hospitals, both the states <\/b>and the federal government <\/b>pay for it.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s fight is between the federal government, who says the states need to rein in growth on hospital spending, and the states, who say they need more help from the federal government to pay their hospital bills.<\/p>\n

This debate goes back to an agreement made in 2023, when the federal government promised to increase its share of hospital funding in exchange for the states and territories taking on responsibility for some disability services to take the pressure off the NDIS<\/b>. <\/p>\n

And everyone was happy! Kind of. Not really. A big sticking point has been the amount of growth the federal government is willing to support in hospital spending, which is currently capped at 6.5 per cent a year (after that, the states have to cover any amount entirely by themselves).<\/p>\n

The cost to run hospitals is growing quickly due to an aging population, more pressure on emergency departments and recent inflation. The federal government wants the states and territories to help shoulder a higher share of that cost.<\/p>\n

But state health ministers<\/b> are warning they can’t pay more and argue it isn’t fair to ask them to, because so many things that are putting pressure on the system are actually the responsibility of the federal government.<\/p>\n

One example is aged care, which is funded and run by the Commonwealth. The states and territories say their hospital bills are higher because people who should be in aged care but can’t find an available spot are languishing in public hospital beds.<\/p>\n

And the clock is ticking, because the South Australian government<\/b> goes into caretaker mode on February 21 ahead of the state election, which means they won\u2019t be able to sign off on any new offer.<\/p>\n

And that would be bad. For a variety of reasons, hospitals find it really hard to operate without a forward budget.<\/p>\n

52m agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 10:14pm<\/p>\n

Groups call on government to refuse entry to Israeli President Isaac Herzog\"Isabella<\/p>\n

The Australian National Imams Council, Jewish Council of Australia, <\/b>and Hind Rajab Foundation <\/b>have lodged a legal complaint against Israeli President Isaac Herzog<\/b>‘s visit to Australia next month.<\/p>\n

The complaint, submitted to the attorney-general, home affairs minister and Australian Federal Police, calls for a refusal of President Herzog’s entry to Australia.<\/p>\n

In a statement, the organisations also called for a criminal investigation into Mr Herzog under Australian law.<\/p>\n

\n

“The complaint \u2026 raises serious concerns that President Herzog’s public statements and conduct may amount to incitement to genocide, complicity in war crimes, and unlawful hate speech under Australian and international law,” the statement read.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Mr Herzog is scheduled to visit Australia next month on invite of the prime minister and governor-general following the Bondi terror attack.<\/p>\n

The councils say the action they have taken is not directed at the Jewish community but is motivated by a concern for social cohesion in Australia.<\/p>\n

“Permitting the visit of a highly controversial foreign head of state accused of serious international crimes risks inflaming social tensions, undermining Australia’s hate-speech protections, and placing Australian communities at risk.”<\/p>\n

1h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 9:42pmWhat is Thriving Kids and why is it being discussed?\"Evan<\/p>\n

Announced last August<\/a>, surprising the states and disability sector, Thriving Kids<\/b> has been pitched as an NDIS<\/b> alternative for children with “mild-to-moderate” developmental delays and autism.<\/p>\n

NDIS Minister Mark Butler<\/b> said at the time the program would be jointly run and funded by the Commonwealth and states, and hoped the first phase of the rollout could start on July 1 this year.<\/p>\n

The finer details are yet to be designed, or at least made public, but the idea<\/a> is that Thriving Kids would “leverage” existing state systems, and be run in places such as health and early childhood centres.<\/p>\n

While the states have agreed in-principle to jointly fund Thriving Kids, a formal deal remains unsigned.<\/p>\n

The money needed to kickstart the next phase of the design of Thriving Kids is tied up in the public hospital deal \u2014 a separate deal Butler is trying to broker with the states today.<\/p>\n

Once this is signed, we can expect to see a bit more movement.<\/p>\n

Thriving Kids is seen as a central pillar<\/a> of the government’s plan to rein in the growth of the NDIS, which now supports more than 700,000 participants and costs $50 billion a year.<\/p>\n

With nowhere else to go to get support, about 11 per cent of all kids aged five to seven were on the NDIS at the end of June last year. About 40 per cent of participants of all ages had a primary diagnosis of autism, and 11 per cent had a developmental delay.<\/p>\n

1h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 9:37pm<\/p>\n

Column comparing Sussan Ley to marriage ‘disgraceful’, Kovacic says\"Joshua<\/p>\n

Maria Kovacic<\/b> says she thought a recent column written by a senior male journalist about the marriage eligibility of\u00a0Sussan Ley<\/b>\u00a0was “disgraceful”.<\/p>\n

The article, written in online publication The Nightly by Aaron Patrick,<\/b> was titled Why I Wouldn’t Marry Sussan Ley.<\/p>\n

The Liberal senator says she thinks it was highly inappropriate and doesn’t reflect “credible political discourse”.<\/p>\n

\n

“We have moved away from a discourse around policy analysis and the judgement of ideas, rather, a shift to a judgement of human beings and individuals and basing an assessment on someone’s marriage eligibility or the way they might drive a vehicle,” Kovacic says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

“I think it reflects more on the quality and credibility of the journalism than that of the subject.”<\/p>\n

1h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 9:26pmLiberals driving leadership speculation need to ‘reflect’ on expectations of voters: Lib senator\"Joshua<\/p>\n

Liberal senator Maria Kovacic<\/b> says Liberals driving speculation about the Liberal leadership need to “reflect” on what voters expect of the opposition.<\/p>\n

Senior conservative Liberals Angus Taylor<\/b> and Andrew Hastie<\/b> met in Melbourne yesterday to decide who should run for the Liberal leadership.<\/p>\n

They met ahead of a memorial service for former federal Liberal MP Katie Allen<\/b>, who died from a rare form of cancer in late December, aged 59.<\/p>\n

Speaking to ABC Radio National Breakfast<\/b>, Kovacic says the Coalition split and yesterday’s meeting is “not a reflection of the leadership” voters expect.<\/p>\n

\n

“They expect us to lead and they expect us to serve, and leadership isn’t a title. True leadership is based on a culture of service and selflessness, and that’s something that Katie Allen demonstrated. And it’s earned through trust and that is what Sussan Ley<\/b> is trying to do,” Kovacic says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

“I support her. She is working hard. She’s keeping her commitment that she made to our party room and the commitment she made to Australians.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

1h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 9:10pmProductivity Commission report finds aged care assessment wait times increased 22.7%\"Isabella<\/p>\n

A report from the Productivity Commission<\/b> has painted a dire picture of the state of the aged care system, prior to the government’s reforms commencing in November.<\/p>\n

The new report captures data from the 2024-25 period, and shows the median time to receive an aged care assessment increased by 22.7 per cent in the year to 2025.<\/p>\n

The time between assessment approval and service commencement more than doubled, going from 118 days in 2023-24 to 245 days in 2024 to 25.<\/p>\n

Over the same period, aged care providers met 24\/7 registered nurse requirements 93 per cent of the time.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for Aged Care Minister Sam Rae <\/b>says the government’s reforms since November are bringing wait times down.<\/p>\n

\n

“We’re seeing encouraging signs that our methodical and comprehensive work to reform the aged care sector and get more Australians the care they need faster is moving in the right direction,” the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

“We know there’s always more work to do, and we’ll continue to focus on bringing down wait times further so that every older Australian can access the care they need, as soon as they need it.”<\/p>\n

1h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 9:08pm<\/p>\n

Health minister responds to aged care Productivity Commission figures\"Joshua<\/p>\n

Date released by the Productivity Commission shows the wait time to receive an aged care assessment jumped to 27 days last financial year. We’ll have more on that story soon.<\/p>\n

Health Minister Mark Butler<\/b> has told ABC Radio National Breakfast<\/b>\u00a0those figures are outdated because it covers the last financial year.<\/p>\n

But he says there is a growth in demand for aged care due to the growth in baby boomers turning 80.<\/p>\n

He says the wait time for aged care packages has reduced after new packages were introduced last year.<\/p>\n

\n

“I’m not going to pretend this isn’t going to continue to be a challenge. Just the sheer numbers are a very significant challenge for us to meet. But we’re heading in the right direction,” Butler says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

2h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 8:57pmStates request delay to thriving Kids program start date, health minister says\"Joshua<\/p>\n

Health Minister Mark Butler<\/b> says the start date for the Thriving Kids<\/b> program is expected to be delayed by a few months.<\/p>\n

The program is designed to treat children with mild-to-moderate developmental delays and autism outside of the NDIS<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Thriving Kids was meant to officially begin on July 1, but Butler says the states\u00a0have requested a delay to the start date.<\/p>\n

Speaking to ABC Radio National Breakfast<\/b>, the health minister says NDIS participants will still receive care until the program is up and running.<\/p>\n

“I think the important things for families to hear is that all governments now recognise the need to provide broad-based services that are easy to access,” Butler says.<\/p>\n

\n

“We only ever committed to the start of service and we said that we expected the program to be fully rolled out sometime after that. And certainly there will be no changes to the access arrangements to the NDIS until the program is fully rolled out.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

2h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 8:45pm<\/p>\n

Cost of failing to reach hospital funding deal will be ‘significant’: Butler\"Joshua<\/p>\n

Health Minister Mark Butler<\/b> says states and territories are running out of time to come to a new hospital agreement.<\/p>\n

As we have been reporting, national cabinet is meeting in Sydney today to negotiate a new five-year public hospital funding deal.<\/p>\n

The federal, state and territory governments are trying to reach a deal before South Australia enters caretaker mode on February 21.<\/p>\n

Speaking to ABC Radio National Breakfast<\/b>, Butler says he’s cautiously optimistic a deal will be reached today.<\/p>\n

\n

“The cost of failure will be very significant because there is a shared commitment not only to ensuring our hospitals run well and deal with some changes in the population, particularly the aging of the population,” Butler says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

“Premiers always come to these meetings wanting more money. I think your listeners understand that truism of Australian politics. But there is a lot of goodwill, which is why I’m cautiously optimistic that we can see a deal struck today.”<\/p>\n

2h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 8:24pm<\/p>\n

Jane Hume says Taylor and Hastie meeting on Liberal leadership wasn’t ‘edifying’\"Joshua<\/p>\n

Health Minister Mark Butler<\/b> and Liberal senator Jane Hume<\/b> have stepped up on Channel Seven for their weekly morning spot.<\/p>\n

Hume has been asked if it was appropriate for Andrew Hastie<\/b> and Angus Taylor<\/b> to meet ahead of a memorial for former Liberal MP Katie Allen<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Hastie and Taylor met in Melbourne yesterday to discuss the Liberal leadership amid speculation Sussan Ley<\/b> could face a leadership spill.<\/p>\n

But the conservative Liberals couldn’t decide who should run for the Liberal leadership.<\/p>\n

Hume says the meeting wasn’t an “edifying” moment for anyone who was there, and says there is no challenge to Ley’s leadership.<\/p>\n

\n

“Neither of them have actually put their hand up and said ‘We’re concerned about the leadership and we’re going to challenge’,” Hume says.<\/p>\n

“Sussan Ley is the leader, and she continues to have the support of her party room, and she continues to have the support of her shadow cabinet,” she says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

2h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 8:15pm<\/p>\n

Butler says Thriving Kids will give children, families access to ‘broad-based’ services\"Joshua<\/p>\n

State and territory leaders are meeting with the prime minister<\/b> in Sydney today to negotiate a new five-year public hospital funding deal.<\/p>\n

Part of that funding deal will be about how to transition children with mild to moderate developmental delays and autism off foundational supports and into the government’s new Thriving Kids <\/b>program.<\/p>\n

Health Minister Mark Butler <\/b>has told Channel Nine that existing NDIS <\/b>participants won’t be removed from the system.<\/p>\n

The health minister says the Commonwealth has put money on the table to develop the Thriving Kids program.<\/p>\n

\n

“That will give parents and families and young children access to services in a broad-based way, very easy to access, no need for a formal diagnosis that can take years and cost many thousands of dollars,” Butler says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

2h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 8:13pmAustralia monitoring Nipah virus closely, health minister says\"Joshua<\/p>\n

India’s West Bengal<\/strong>: Countries across Asia are stepping up screening after two people were detected with the deadly Nipah <\/strong>virus in West Bengal.<\/p>\n

Health Minister\u00a0Mark Butler\u00a0<\/b>has stepped up on\u00a0Channel Nine where he’s been asked about a new outbreak of a virus.<\/p>\n

The health minister says the virus is “very rare” but also “very deadly” and that Indian authorities appear to have the outbreak under control.<\/p>\n

Butler says the virus doesn’t spread like COVID<\/b> or the flu and that human-to-human transmission is “difficult”.<\/p>\n

He says the Australian government is monitoring the virus closely on a daily basis.<\/p>\n

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“The Centre for Disease Control, our CDC, has put advice on its website, which I encourage anyone interested to go to,” Butler says.<\/p>\n

“It’s pulling all of the advice from around the world together in a single, authoritative piece of advice for Australians.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The health minister says the government has no intention at this stage to change entry protocols at the border.<\/p>\n

2h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 8:08pmNational cabinet to negotiate public hospital funding deal\"Stephanie<\/p>\n

After months of tense negotiations with the states over public hospital funding, it is crunch time for the Commonwealth as it hustles to get a new five-year agreement over the line.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese<\/b> has put a new hospital funding offer to the states and territories, which was discussed informally at dinner at Kirribilli House in Sydney last night, and will be discussed more formally at a national cabinet meeting today.<\/p>\n

Some state sources have told the ABC the offer is an improvement and a step in the right direction, while others have been more pessimistic about what’s on the table.<\/p>\n

Before Christmas, the states rejected the Commonwealth’s offer of an extra $21 billion over five years, with an additional $2 billion over four years to deal with the increasingly political problem of aged care patients languishing in public hospital beds.<\/p>\n

With the South Australian government in caretaker mode from February 21 ahead of a state election, there is a sense of urgency to get the deal over the line as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler <\/b>on Thursday conceded if an agreement was not squared away by then, it would be difficult to secure a deal by the time a one-year interim funding agreement expires in June.<\/p>\n

Albanese says it is in everyone’s best interests for a deal to be struck now.<\/p>\n

3h agoThu 29 Jan 2026 at 8:04pm<\/p>\n

Good morning \ud83d\udc4b\"Joshua<\/p>\n

Hello and welcome to another edition of our federal politics live blog! It’s great to have you join us again.<\/p>\n

I’m Josh Boscaini<\/b>\u00a0live from Parliament House in Canberra here and ready to bring you all of today’s federal politics news.<\/p>\n

National cabinet<\/b> will meet in Sydney today to negotiate a new five-year public hospital funding agreement.<\/p>\n

As you’ll read from national health reporter Stephanie Dalzell<\/b> soon, some states believe the federal government’s latest funding offer is an improvement.<\/p>\n

There’s a few other bits and pieces happening, so without further ado, let’s get straight into the day!<\/p>\n

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