Page 3654 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 20 October 1993
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MR BERRY: I have always answered the question, and that takes me to another point where I - - -
Mr Cornwell: You have not answered the first one yet.
MR BERRY: If you keep interjecting, I will keep answering your queries. I noticed in the paper today that Mr Humphries said:
I don't think Mr Berry has answered a question for two years.
Mr Kaine: He is right. When are you going to start?
MR BERRY: You keep interjecting.
Mr Humphries: I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. I am glad that Mr Berry has quoted us back; but in fact the question was about Mental Health Week, not about Mr Berry's appalling performance in answering questions at question time.
MADAM SPEAKER: Perhaps if members heeded the requirements of standing order 39 Mr Berry may be able to proceed. Mr Berry, please answer the question.
MR BERRY: What is very important is that we paint the complete picture so that there is nobody misleading anybody in relation to the issue of mental health services. In 1989 when the first Labor Government was in power we realised that mental health services were in need of reform. We established the ACT Mental Health Advisory Committee - which was later undone by Mr Humphries, as people will recall - which initiated the Balancing Rights report in November 1990. That was announced later on by Mr Humphries, but it was initiated by Labor. We are pleased that he went on with that, but it was - - -
Mr Humphries: Do we get the credit for the birthing centre too, because we initiated that?
MR BERRY: We do not claim credit for everything, but we do claim credit for most things that have been good since self-government. Unfortunately, as I said, that advisory committee was disbanded by the Alliance Government, Mr Humphries in particular.
Mr Burdekin came to Canberra in 1992 and, like Labor in 1989, he saw that mental health services were in need of reform. What he saw and heard will ultimately, I guess, turn up in the report that he is about to release. But in the time between his visit to Canberra and the release of his report - which is due to happen at about 3 o'clock, I think - we put in place in 1992-93 an intensive care team for the mentally ill and the outreach service for adolescents. This is all part of the big picture, Mrs Carnell - not just beds.
Mrs Carnell: But it is not what I asked about.
MR BERRY: You are going to get the complete picture. I mention also the Mental Health Tribunal and the case management scheme, and in this year's budget we have provided funding for a generic crisis service. They are all part of the services that we provide to the mentally ill. We are not just going to be led down the path of targeting little bits and pieces which by themselves might be presented as something that is wrong with the services that we provide. You must look at the big picture.
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