Page 4587 - Week 15 - Wednesday, 20 November 1991
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Mr Kaine: Yes, almost unpolluted by government members.
MR HUMPHRIES: That is right, yes. We seem to be making good progress actually, while they are all away.
My first example is that of question time today. The Minister, I think, gave an excellent example of what has been fairly standard fare for the last five months, since this Government took office. Mr Collaery, for example, asked a very simple question about whether written updates with respect to hospital financing had been received by the Minister. He asked when those updates had been received and whether they had been requested formally by the Minister in writing or orally. All three of those questions, to the best of my knowledge, and to the best of my listening to the answers, were unanswered. No attempt whatever was made to answer those questions.
I asked about first home visits. I asked whether first home visits were to be cut out by this Government on 1 January. Mr Berry rose in his place to attack vociferously the fact that such a suggestion could be made by the Opposition. He was virtually frothing at the mouth at this idea that we could suggest that there was some attack on first home visits; and then he confirmed, sotto voce, in the course of his answer, such as it was, that, by the way, first visits are going to be cut out. That is typical of this sort of Minister. He confirmed today that the Government was considering cutting out first home visits.
Mr Berry: No, they are not. You see, you do not even listen to the answers - and you do not like the answers. That is your problem.
MR HUMPHRIES: That is what you said, Mr Berry, and, if you cannot recall, I think the Hansard will recall it for you. I asked a supplementary question. In fact, this supplementary question was largely the same question that I had asked him, but I had to ask it as a supplementary question. I asked: Did he acknowledge that these visits, in the past, had helped to detect cases of child abuse and postnatal depression? For Mr Berry's benefit, that is certainly the case. If he spoke to any community nurses working in this area, they would not hesitate to tell him that that is, in fact, the case. But he would not know that; he does not speak to those sorts of people.
But, having taken that question, he then rose and said, "I do not know; I will have to find out", and sat down. No attempt was made by this Minister - this so-called Minister for Health - to say to the Assembly, "You have raised a legitimate question, a matter of concern to yourself and your constituents. I will get an answer for you. I will take this question on notice and come back to the Assembly". Mr Berry smiles - "Ha, ha, ha. Is it not a great joke? I have deprived a member of the Assembly of another piece of information about the good government of
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