Page 45 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 16 February 1993
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Mr De Domenico: As Mrs Carnell did when she was a member of the board.
MR BERRY: She never forgot that she was on the board. She still tried to manage it from in here; that was the problem. She had to be talked into resigning from the board in the first place. It would have been a bit of relief for the people of the ACT if she had stayed there. But she never forgot the experience and wanted to stay on. The problem was that all of the hyperbole and the attacks on the Board of Health made it almost impossible for the board to manage its affairs. The board, as the organisation charged by law to manage the hospital system, folded under that pressure.
Mrs Carnell: That is rubbish.
MR BERRY: Mrs Carnell says that that is rubbish. I am not the only one saying that. The chairman of the board is saying it and other people are saying it. As has been correctly reported, the Liberals have miscalculated on this one. The Liberals giveth and the Liberals taketh away. They appointed to the Board of Health people who later resigned because of their actions. The problem for the Liberals is that they have made it more difficult for those who remain to manage the health system, to get on with their job. They have made it more difficult because of their continuous attacks, which are mostly wrong and sometimes designed to create mayhem and concern in the community. We only had to listen to Mrs Carnell in relation to police just recently. She tried to frighten all the old ladies in the ACT by telling them that they were in for something terrible if they - - -
Mr De Domenico: I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. I respectfully refer to the speech notes handed out by the Minister. I do not see anything in them about Mrs Carnell frightening people and causing mayhem. It is the Health Bill 1993 that we are trying to - - -
MADAM SPEAKER: There is no point of order. Please proceed, Mr Berry.
MR BERRY: I have four minutes to go. I did not want to waste time. I gave up about five minutes to interjections, Madam Speaker. I do not know what Mr De Domenico is whingeing about. Here we are at another crossroad, I suppose, for health and we are introducing a piece of legislation which not only changes the way that we administer health services but also enshrines the very important principles of Medicare for the people of the ACT to see. It is not a sneak attack after an election - none of that sort of stuff. That is the sort of stuff that we can expect from the Liberals. We have put the Medicare principles in the legislation to make sure that the people of the ACT know where we are going on health. Madam Speaker, I present the explanatory memorandum for the Health Bill 1993.
Debate (on motion by Mrs Carnell) adjourned.
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