Page 1459 - Week 05 - Thursday, 13 May 1993
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In that sense Mr Connolly's actions will ease the operational requirements of ambulance officers, and I think they will welcome that. I welcome it. If you look at the comprehensive ACT Health activity report, an unequalled report across Australia, and you turn to page 7, which you probably have not even bothered to do, the ACT Ambulance Service continues to provide response levels above nationally acceptable standards. It will be able to perform those duties in an environment which is much easier for it, once the demarcation between the other two services evaporates, and it will now. There will be some residual antipathy; there always is, after the settlement of a demarcation dispute. They are uncomfortable disputes. But one service can get on with its job without the other. It is not the same as having a demarcation dispute on the one site, when business can suffer as a result. This demarcation is no more comfortable than many others have been.
I congratulate Mr Connolly on his decisive action. I think this inquiry is unnecessary. We are encouraging the services to cooperate and to work more efficiently in their separate fields. The ACT Ambulance Service, as Mr Connolly has said, is moving towards co-location and we are encouraging workers in both services to work more closely together and to seek out efficiencies which not only will serve the community better but also will serve their own career interests better and so on. The Transport Workers Union is responsible for the Ambulance Service on the one hand, the United Firefighters Union is responsible for the firefighters, and the AFP Association is responsible for police officers. They have different objectives, and sometimes these things clash. I think that the decision that Mr Connolly has taken is a responsible one.
When it comes to an inquiry, what will happen is that the demarcation lines will be drawn again. People will want to line up, warm up and start the struggle again. That is unacceptable. We are proceeding down a progressive path to get better results for the people of the ACT more efficiently. The Liberals propose to interfere with that. That is what they always do. They are spoilers and narks. Nothing changes with the Liberals; they are spoilers and narks.
Mr Westende: That is correct.
MR BERRY: "That is correct", he says. They are spoilers and narks. Madam Speaker, progressive moves are being made and the Liberals are setting out to undermine the process. They are to be condemned for that.
MR STEVENSON (4.46): There certainly have been longstanding concerns between some of the emergency services and it is obvious that some of these remain unresolved. There would be no doubt whatsoever that the vast majority of people within the emergency services not only wish to work well together but do. We are well aware that there have been some highly publicised cases where there have been conflicts. That is not to anybody's benefit and should be worked out. Mr Berry's statement that the Labor Party has won is perhaps unfortunate and - - -
Mr Berry: I did not say that.
Mr Humphries: Yes, you did.
Mr Berry: Is as one.
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