Independent MP Andrew Gee gets the next non-government question, which gives us a break from Sussan Ley’s attempts at political relevancy.

Gee:

The rural doctor shortage crisis is a and a shameful indictment. The Charles Sturt University School of Medicine in the Central West of New South Wales is training doctors in the about for practice in the bush, but for half a decade has been restricted by the government to only 37 student places each year across the Commonwealth. This isn’t good enough. When will your government deliver more medical student places to Charles Sturt University so that it can train more country doctors that are so desperately needed.

Mark Butler goes through what the government is doing to open up training places, and then turns to the tenders the government has open for universities to host new medical schools.

There are currently, I think, 100 supported places for medical schools open for tender and Charles Sturt University and other universities are able to apply for that. Obviously it is a competitive process and that will be conducted at arm’s length from myself and from the Education Minister. We have asked in the tender, as I understand it, for universities to indicate a particular focus on general practice because although we want to see doctors more broadly come into the system, we are prioritising an increase in general practice above all things else because we know that a well-functioning general practice scheme is utterly central to a well-functioning health care system. I welcome the question. Obviously I can’t comment on the tender which is open right now, but more doctors, more bulk-billing, more urgent care and even cheaper medicines are the four key pillars of our Strengthening Medicare agenda.