Page 1861 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 30 May 1990
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MR BERRY: I cannot withdraw my opinion.
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Just withdraw those three words and then get on with it, Mr Berry.
MR BERRY: The Deputy Chief Minister seems to be a bit jittery about the issue of low moral fibre, and I can understand why he would be. I withdraw any imputation, but I hold that opinion, and so does the Labor Opposition.
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Thank you. Would you just get on with it now, Mr Berry, having made your withdrawal.
MR BERRY: As Mr Humphries nervously said earlier, talking about bushfires, I know that he is quite worried about his credibility in the community because it has fallen to a low ebb. He has provided us with lots of fuel to start those grassfires because he has disgraced not only himself but also everybody else in the Alliance Government as a result of his management of education and health in this Territory.
In relation to health, Mr Humphries has set out to impose the Liberal philosophy on public hospital services in the ACT. He has announced the closure of the Royal Canberra Hospital, but in more recent times he has announced the establishment of a 150-bed private hospital on the north side of the lake. Associated with that will be a reduction in public hospital beds in the ACT so that viability will be available for the private sector.
Mr Duby: It is a complete misrepresentation.
MR BERRY: Nobody would go into a private hospital bed when there is a good public hospital bed available, Mr Duby.
Mr Duby: There will be no reduction in public beds.
MR BERRY: There will be a reduction. He has also announced the give-away of 25 obstetric beds to the private sector. This is consistent with Mr Stefaniak's attack on women's areas in the Follett budget, as I recall, which was short lived because Mr Stefaniak was not able to direct it appropriately. Notwithstanding his considerable military training, Mr Stefaniak was not able to do that.
Mr Humphries did not know whether he wanted to attack education or health, and eventually decided to attack health in those days. But he has continued with it now. The aim is to force people into more private insurance in order that their fears about beds not being available to them will be allayed, and they will be able to cover themselves by private insurance.
This means that more people in the community will spend more of their scant disposable incomes on private insurance so that they can have access to the private beds to which Mr Humphries' policies will force them to be directed. He
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