Page 1629 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 30 April 1991
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to the major problems in the health budget which were identified in December 1989, problems which he himself promised publicly to fix.
MR SPEAKER: Mr Humphries, please get to the point.
MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, the fact is that there were a great many recommendations flowing out of both the Kearney report and the Treasury report - earlier reports - and now the Enfield report, which have come to the attention of the Government. All those things are matters of concern to this Government, more so apparently than they were of concern to your Government.
I might refresh Mr Berry's memory about the course of action adopted by him and his Government in 1989, when he was asked to address the question of what he should do about directions to the board. He talks about directions to the Board of Health, or the hospitals board. Let me quote from an annexure to the Enfield inquiry report concerning Mr Berry's letter to the then chairman of the Interim Board of Directors, the late Mr Alan Woods. Obviously there was some correspondence about the nature of directions to the then hospitals board. Mr Berry's response is:
In the meantime -
this is pending legislation which never arrived -
I would like the Interim Board to continue to conduct its affairs in accordance with the powers prescribed earlier by the Minister for Arts and Territories, the Hon. Clyde Holding MP. I hope - - -
Mr Berry: On a point of order: The Labor Party's record in government was clean in relation to its management of the hospitals board, but what I would ask you to do, Mr Speaker, is to direct the Minister to be relevant in his response to the question.
MR SPEAKER: Mr Berry, I do not uphold your objection there because Mr Humphries is reading from the latest report, the Enfield report, and I think that is current.
Mr Berry: Mr Speaker, my question was not in relation to the Enfield report. Just to clarify it for your interest, it was in relation to a 1989 report which was delivered in December 1989, the recommendations from which were promised to be implemented by this Minister.
MR SPEAKER: Mr Berry, I would rule that the Enfield report is applicable to that point that you have raised.
Mr Berry: A rather odd ruling, Mr Speaker.
MR SPEAKER: Order!
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