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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1995 Week 8 Hansard (25 October) . . Page.. 2041 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

Mr Speaker, public health policy is based on five principles - intersectoral action, environmental security, community activity, individual capacity to act and the reorientation of services to prevention. These criteria have been accepted by the World Health Organisation. Let us put these words and the words of our own ACT policy documents into action. Let us adopt a multidisciplinary approach to solving the problems that face us in the ACT not only at the level of policy development but also at a practical level. Let us strengthen the community's capacity to promote good health throughout the ACT.

MR MOORE (4.10): Mr Speaker, perhaps like Ms Tucker, I chose to speak at this stage rather than in the in-principle stage of the debate because I thought the issues raised by Ms Tucker in her amendment are ones that take the Bill to the very heart of what we are trying to achieve with health promotion. In one way or another Ms Tucker was referring to the World Health Organisation's approach to health promotion - a matter on which I have spoken a number of times in this Assembly with reference to the 1986 Ottawa Charter, the document that sought health for all by the year 2000. The issues raised by Ms Tucker in her speech cover the approaches that were outlined in that World Health Organisation document, as well as in the health goals and targets document that was released by the Department of Health last year.

I think that the establishment of this board will be a sensible step forward in terms of health promotion. I am delighted that the Government has retained its electoral obligation to ensure that health promotion is expanded. I would hope to see it expanded even further. Mr Speaker, I will be supporting the Bill, and it will be enhanced by this first amendment proposed by Ms Tucker. I look forward to the very positive contribution that such a Health Promotion Board will be able to make, so that people can understand and improve their own physical health.

Amendment agreed to.

Clause, as amended, agreed to.

Clauses 6 and 7, by leave, taken together, and agreed to.

Clause 8

MS TUCKER (4.13): I move:

Page 3, line 28, subclause (1), omit "9", substitute "11".

Mr Speaker, the second and third of the amendments I have circulated relate to the membership of the Health Promotion Board. The Greens wish to ensure that the key stakeholders in our society in the area of health promotion have a voice on bodies such as this board. It is just not good enough to say that we support the community health sector and health consumer voices but to leave them out of decision-making bodies and funding boards. Our amendment calls for an increase in the number of health representatives, from two to three, and specifies that one of these health representatives shall have expertise in community health and another a background in health consumer matters. The third addition to the membership is a person with expertise in environmental health.

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