Richard Colbeck attends Ashes Test after snubbing COVID-committee

Labor senator and committee chair Katy Gallagher said it was "completely unacceptable" that Senator Colbeck chose to attend a cricket match rather than "fronting up and doing his job".

But the office of Senator Colbeck, who is also Minister for Sport and a Tasmanian senator, said suggestions he had put sporting commitments ahead of older Australians and aged care residents were "completely misguided".

The spokesman has also accused Senator Gallagher's committee of trying to redirect resources from the health department for political purposes.

Senator Colbeck had agreed to attend a hearing on January 25, but had to cancel because of a family bereavement.

Newly published correspondence shows Senator Gallagher wrote to Senator Colbeck on January 7, asking him to appear before a hearing on January 14 into the Omicron wave and its impact on older Australians and the aged care system.

Australia recorded almost 100,000 new cases on January 7 as the new variant swept through the community, including into hundreds of aged care homes.

Senator Colbeck responded on January 9, expressing concern about the "impact of the timing of the hearing".

He said "diverting time and resources", including that of senior officials, to appear before the hearing would "impact the urgent and critical work" being done to manage Omicron outbreaks.

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Senator Colbeck offered the committee a private one-hour briefing from the department, as well as an opportunity to reschedule the hearing for a later date.

But in revelations which have been seized upon by the Opposition, travel records show that on the date of the proposed hearing Senator Colbeck was attending the first day of the fifth Ashes Test in Hobart.

His attendance was declared on his register of interests under "sponsored travel or hospitality".

The senator's register of interests also showed that he attended the second and third day's play. However, his office maintains that while he was invited to attend all three days, he only attended the first.

Senator Colbeck's spokesman said the minister's commitment and dedication to his portfolios had "never been greater".

"The decision for Minister Colbeck to attend the Ashes Test in Hobart was made as part of his commitments as Minister for Sport and Senator for Tasmania," the spokesman said.

The spokesman said the minister was in daily contact with aged care stakeholders and on January 14 alone met with the vaccine rollout taskforce, aged care quality and safety commissioner and acting health department secretary, and the deputy chief medical officer.

Hobart's historic first Ashes was a day-night match, which meant Senator Colbeck would've been able to attend work-related meetings in the morning and early afternoon.

Senator Gallagher said she was "astounded" by the minister's actions given the crisis which had engulfed the aged care sector.

"The aged care sector's been calling for the Defence Force to come in and feed people, and clean them, and this guy is sitting back at the cricket and pretends that it's OK," she told The Canberra Times.

"I just don't think that floats at all."

Senator Gallagher wouldn't be drawn on whether Senator Colbeck should be sacked from his portfolio, after he was already demoted in Scott Morrison's ministerial ranks following a series of embarrassing missteps earlier in the pandemic.

But she said Mr Morrison now faced a test on the standards he was willing to accept from his ministers.

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