Page 3393 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 11 October 1994
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Woden Valley Hospital - Bed Numbers
MR DE DOMENICO: Madam Speaker, my question without notice is directed to the Minister for Health. On 20 September, Minister, you told the Assembly in answer to a question:
... I did say that we wanted to get those beds reopened, and we provided the funding to have them reopened by 1 July. That was to get us to 600. We are currently at 584 ...
Minister, official figures from Woden Valley Hospital show that, at the end of August, 562 beds were available; not 584. I ask the Minister: Did he mislead the Assembly, given that the August figures are the last officially available; or does he know something that the staff at Woden Valley Hospital do not know?
MR CONNOLLY: Madam Speaker, throughout my period as Health Minister, as throughout all my period as a Minister, I have been full and frank and have given this Assembly the advice that is given to me by officials. Any figure that I have given to this Assembly is the figure that I have been advised. My clear directions to health officials from day one were to move to get beds reopened. We have been moving in that direction. I have not seen this particular piece of paper. You are just grubby little individuals, you lot. Mrs Carnell laughs and chuckles, as she does about all these matters; it is all a great lark for Mrs Carnell. You are out there saying to the public, "More beds, more money, more helicopters, more doctors, more nurses", and you are promising to slash $30m off health. You would destroy the system.
I did not mislead the Assembly, Mr De Domenico. I have never misled this Assembly. As I said in my answer to Mrs Carnell earlier, the last figure that I had available, from my recollection, was of the order of some 580, which is consistent with what I said then. I will give Mrs Carnell, as I promised in my answer to the first question, the latest available breakdown, the advice that officials give to me. The advice that officials give to me, I will give to this Assembly.
MADAM SPEAKER: I ask members to have a good look at standing order 117(d) relating to question time.
MR DE DOMENICO: I have a supplementary question, Madam Speaker. At the end of August 1993, Minister, under the former Minister, Mr Berry, there were 622 public beds available at Woden Valley Hospital. Exactly one year later, and with you, Mr Connolly, as Minister, there are 562 beds. How can the Minister explain the reduction of 9.65 per cent?
MR CONNOLLY: Any statement coming from Mr De Domenico needs to be treated with grave caution. As I said in response to Mrs Carnell's original question, I will get from my department a breakdown.
Mr De Domenico: Here they are.
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