Page 1079 - Week 04 - Wednesday, 20 April 1994
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
It has always been a political issue. They have an infatuation with the private sector, as if it were the answer to all the difficulties within the health field. Of course, it is not, never has been and never will be. It forms an important part of the delivery of health services in the community, but the core services will always be provided by the public sector, at least in our lifetime.
I know that the Labor Party, in all of its forums, is committed to a strong public hospital system and the provision of core services in accordance with the Medicare principles. Medicare is a Labor initiative, and part of that initiative, of course, is a strong public hospital system. I am confident that, whatever the Liberals opposite do, however they bleat, however they complain, however they mislead, however they use people with illnesses and complaints to argue their case, the public hospital system and all of those people who work so hard will continue to work hard to manage and to provide medical and nursing services and other associated services throughout the system. I know that they will work hard to make sure that the public hospital system works well, despite the Liberals. I know that they will succeed, because little by little the credibility of the Liberals is falling by the wayside. I hope that they keep it up for just a bit longer, because soon all your credibility will be gone.
MR DE DOMENICO (4.18): It is always very easy to follow Mr Berry, especially when he stands up and waxes lyrical about how political the Liberal Party is. If one listened carefully to Mr Berry, there was not one fact in what he said. It was a personal attack on Mrs Carnell, a personal attack on the Liberal Party, once again a personal attack on the private sector and an attack on anybody or anything that does not agree ideologically with Mr Berry. Mr Berry has every right to stand up here and give his opinion; but, when he starts to say of the Liberal Party "however they mislead", he should remember that, as far as I am aware, the only member of this Assembly who has ever been accused by this Assembly of misleading is in fact Mr Berry. Hard as it might seem for Mr Berry to take that, he has to accept it. I thought he was going to accept it better than he did, but to him it is a personal thing.
There is no doubt, Madam Speaker, that the morale of people in the health system over the past two or three weeks has gone up incredibly. However much Mr Berry might not believe it or accept it, it is true. Mr Connolly, in the very short time that he has been the Minister for Health, has begun to establish a trusting and professional relationship with the doctors who provide the skilled services to our hospitals. Mr Connolly said that he has had personal experience with our hospitals. He was at the Woden Valley Hospital on Saturday night. He does not know whether the procedure he referred to was performed by a VMO or a salaried medical officer, but he could physically see what was being done in Canberra's public hospital system. That is fantastic.
We also concede to Mr Connolly, in a very commonsense sort of way, that it is not only the ACT but all jurisdictions all over the country that have problems in keeping hospital beds open and in keeping to health budgets. There is no denying that, and the Liberal Party has never denied that. But, Madam Speaker, Mr Connolly will be haunted time and time again by the words of Mr Berry, who stands up and professes to be
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .