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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1995 Week 9 Hansard (23 November) . . Page.. 2406 ..

MR CONNOLLY (continuing):

but also because, on the Government's own figures tabled in this place earlier this week, the health budget already, as we come to the end of the first quarter, is out by some 5 per cent. This is a budget which, even by the time we come to debate it here in the Assembly, is simply not holding up. I have not only the criticism that this is a badly targeted strategy in relation to health. Mrs Carnell's obsession with outside experts, outside consultants - "Put all your faith in the million dollar Booz Allen consultancy" - really seems to be taking us nowhere other than creating massive uncertainty for the work force. As a result of that massive uncertainty for the work force in those areas where the Government has finally seen the light and lifted its recruitment freeze, they are finding it difficult to recruit workers. That goes for theatre nurses and it also goes, more controversially, to the issue of mental health nurses.

Without pointing the finger, because, as I said, Mrs Carnell, we deliberately avoided doing that, what I did say to you is that your Government must accept some responsibility for the difficulties in recruiting staff. You cannot simply say, "Look, we cannot recruit staff; it is not our fault". You have this axe of Booz Allen hanging over the head of every person who works in Health. It is a well-published fact that there are some 400 jobs at risk. It is a well-known fact that there are many nursing jobs at risk. That must make persons think carefully when looking at a nursing job in ACT Health or a nursing job in New South Wales Health, which has a much bigger pull and where there are greater promotion opportunities and greater career opportunities. They would choose to go to a system where the State Government is wanting to enhance its health services and is putting money into additional services. Mr Speaker, they are the criticisms that we have made repeatedly in this place about the health budget.

Mr Berry referred earlier to the health centres. Labor put forward in this place motions in relation to blocking the sale of the health centres. They did not get support from the crossbenches. In relation to the flogging off of our nursing home assets, Labor put forward a motion calling on the Government not to proceed with that, and again that was not supported by crossbench members. We saw the other day that Mr Osborne suddenly announced that he was thinking of moving some amendments to the budget in relation to health. I was more than a little surprised at the fact that he now wanted to move an amendment to the health budget. When we had concrete proposals to try to rein in some of this Government's irresponsible slash-and-burn approach to the health budget, he was not able to support us. When he knew that an amendment would be unsuccessful, he seemed able to support us.

Mr Speaker, another issue that we must address in relation to the health budget, which was pursued in the Estimates Committee without any satisfactory assurances being given, is the sale of QEII and what will happen about its replacement. At the time that the Estimates Committee was asking the Chief Minister these questions, her response was, "Wait and see what happens when the review of maternal health services comes out". That has now been published and it makes a very clear and very watertight recommendation, and that is that the Government provide a purpose built, stand-alone facility of 13 beds to replace QEII. Mr Speaker, we expect to hear today some response from the Government on that. We pointed out a major uncertainty in the budget in that the three-year budget projection identifies a revenue item in next year's budget for the sale of QEII. The Government is projecting its budget next year based on revenue flowing from the sale of the QEII site.

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