Page 4111 - Week 15 - Thursday, 17 December 1992
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Mr Humphries: Talk about blame the board.
MR BERRY: No, no; it is not blaming the board. The board is required under the law that you introduced into this Assembly, Mr Humphries, to run the health system. Of course, I can direct the board; and I will, if I am directed by the Assembly in this case.
Mr Kaine: Why do you have to be directed by the Assembly? Why don't you take an initiative yourself?
MR BERRY: I have said that I will do it, Mr Kaine; I have said that I agree. Yes, you have asked me to do it. I will ask - - -
Mr Kaine: You said that three months ago.
MR BERRY: No, no. I said that I will do it. I have asked the board to do it in their next report. They have not said that they will not, so I expect that they will. What all of this demonstrates is that Mrs Carnell has this passion for running the health system. There is no other health system in Australia that does anything more than issue an annual performance report - and I am happy for it to produce a quarterly report. I did. The board issued their report and, as I have said, they issued it in a form that they are happy with.
Mr Kaine: I am sure they are, because it makes them unaccountable, and makes you unaccountable too.
MR BERRY: Fine. Mr Kaine says that the board is unaccountable. The board is accountable under the legislation which your Government supported. I am opposed to the principle of this motion, but I can count. I think it is a scandalous approach. It is just another vote of no confidence in the board. They have produced the report. Mrs Carnell says, "I do not like your report; do it again". So, I will direct the board to go and do it again. Mrs Carnell does not like it; Mr Moore does not like it.
Mr Kaine: And, for the record, I do not like it either.
Mr Moore: The Assembly as a whole, if the motion is passed.
Mrs Carnell: The Assembly does not like it.
MADAM SPEAKER: Order, please!
MR BERRY: Well, that is fine. They will know where it is coming from. They will know where it has come from. Mr Moore will bear the responsibility, No. 9.
Mr Moore: And be very proud of it.
MR BERRY: That is right. That is fine, and I am quite happy for you to do that. So, there we have it. This is nothing more than a politically motivated attempt to interfere with the management of the health system, and it has as a basis some passion in this Assembly to run the hospital system. As I have said in the past, we have a board by law; why not let them run the thing?
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