I am honoured to be appointed to the role of Shadow Assistant Minister for Health and thank the Caucus and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten for this great opportunity.

It is a privilege to be entrusted with such a broad and dynamic portfolio.

I look forward to working with Shadow Minister for Health Catherine King to protect the things that Labor has spent generations building Medicare, a universal health system and investment in preventative health.

As Shadow Assistant Minister for Health I will take the fight up to the Abbott Government over their new GP Tax, their cuts to public health bodies and their botched decision to pull down the Health Star Rating website.

Coming from the Illawarra, I understand the difficult health challenges facing regional communities and will make this a particular focus of my work in this role.