The 2025 Federal election result

Monday 5 May 2025

The Labor party has been returned to government for another term with a decisive majority in the House of Representatives.  We are still waiting to see the make-up of the Senate however Labor looks set to gain 3-4 seats which will aid the passage of legislation in this term of government, albeit it will still need to negotiate the passage of legislation through the Senate. 

APNA congratulates the Labor government on this election result and looks forward to continuing to work with its health leaders, particularly Minister for Health and Aged Care, The Hon Mark Butler and Deputy Minister for Health and Aged Care, The Hon Ged Kearney.

The Labor Party’s track record in health

During the past term, the Labor Government has been highly engaged with the challenges of the health system, the issues facing nurses, and the nursing profession more broadly.  The Labor party recognises that nurses are a critical part of the health workforce and that they are the largest health profession in Australia. 

In the last term, It has invested in nurses and midwives through:

• Supporting wage increases for aged care nurses
• Funding scholarships for nurses and midwives to do postgraduate study to extend their skills and experience to become a highly trained nurse practitioners or endorsed midwives
• Supporting nursing and other students with Fee-Free TAFE
• Funding paid placements through the upcoming Commonwealth Prac Payment
• Establishing  the Nurse and Midwife Health Program Australia (NMHPA) to support nurses and midwives experiencing distress and burnout
• Developing the National Nursing Workforce Strategy which is in its final stages and will guide the nursing workforce helping to address workforce challenges, foster collaboration and drive action among stakeholders in shaping the future of workforce planning, investment and reform
• Removed the requirement for medical practitioners to sign off on nurse practitioners and endorsed midwives accessing the MBS and prescribing drugs on the PBS

The Labor government believes that there is more to do in health and has worked collaboratively with APNA and other nursing and midwifery organisations to ensure nurses and midwives can work to their full scope of practice and have rewarding careers. They have stated that a re-elected Labor Government will:

• Prioritise scope of practice reforms including those identified through the Unleashing the Potential of our Health Workforce (Scope of Practice) Review
• Strengthen our primary health care sector, support multidisciplinary care teams, and remove barriers to enable nurses, midwives and other health professionals to work to their full scope of practice
• Continue to consult with the health sector and support a taskforce to design and coordinate options in response to the Scope of Practice Review
• Prioritise the development of a National Midwifery Strategy and appoint a Commonwealth Chief Midwife, within the Department of Health and Aged Care
• Work with state and territory jurisdictions on a single, national employment check for nurses and midwives
• Progress scoping work on a range of other initiatives to support and make the most of Australia’s nursing and midwifery workforce including:
  • Greater access to and consistency in RUSON and RUSOM programs
  • Implementation of recommendations of the yet to be finalised Independent review of complexity in the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme
  • Increasing Commonwealth contributions to 45 per to fund hospitals over the next 10-years
  • Complete the next 5-year National Health Reform Agreement (NHRA) with a view to more money for beds, to ease ramping, and clear surgery waiting lists
  • Continue to deliver ongoing improvements for nurse practitioner access to Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) items

What next?

The Labor Government will now regroup and consider its next three years of government.  It will closely watch the outcome of the Senate results.  It may make changes to its Cabinet and ministerial portfolios and evolve its policies.

On a macro level, senior Government figures have commented publicly that their focus in this term will be on increasing productivity across the economy.  In the context of health policy, removing barriers to nurses and midwives (and other health professionals) to work to their full scope of practice would be an effective way to increase productivity in primary health care and health more broadly.

How is APNA placed to work with the Labor government?

The Labor party has continually recognised the value that APNA brings to the policy table.  This is evidenced by APNA being included in all major health consultations, committees and policy reviews impacting primary health care over the past three years.

APNA also has strong relationships with all levels of the Labor government and the respect of its leadership.  This has been built on a strong basis of our policy activity, workforce insights, strong leadership and the manner in which we engage.

The Labor party has made health a key element of its policy direction.  We have reason to be optimistic about the policy advances that can be achieved in the next term of government and APNA looks forward to working in this term to achieving a healthier Australia through best practice primary health care nursing.