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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 8 Hansard (20 August) . . Page.. 2970 ..

MR CORNWELL (continuing):

able to get another 80 people into hospital beds. All right, you shake your head. I will await the result within interest.

You have publicly and enthusiastically acknowledged the ACT's ageing population boom but you have not attempted to expedite approvals. Even the amendment which is foreshadowed to this motion still does not say anything about doing something. There is no run on the board in relation to this. It has all been talk. We cannot afford to ignore this because the forecasts for the next 10 years in the ACT alone show that the number of Canberrans in the 40 to 65 age group will increase to 63,000 people. That will place a greater demand on the facilities, understandably.

We cannot, however, wait until that situation arises. We must deal with the problem now so that we can reduce at least some of the waiting list. The minister recently announced proposals for some 500 independent living units. (Extension of time granted.) Plans for some 500 independent living units and 300 aged care beds have been submitted for planning approval by the non-government sector but, again, Mr Corbell there is no commitment as to how quickly these facilities would be passed through the approval process. That is what is concerning me as well as how long some of these applications have been waiting for approval already.

I find it extraordinary that planning approvals can take precedence over the needs of elderly, vulnerable people in this community. I find it extraordinary that these can be held up-

Mr Corbell: It is called the law, you goose.

MR CORNWELL: No, it is not called the law. What it is called, and what it should be called-

MR SPEAKER: Order, members!

MR CORNWELL: Is some fast-tracking and a bit of compassion. That is what it is called, and what it should be called. However, instead, you say, "No, we will stick to the old rules and regulations."I do not expect you to be cutting corners. I do expect you to be giving some priority to these matters because of a crisis.

In summary, I do not believe that this ACT Labor government, especially in the area of planning, is seriously committed to doing everything in its power to alleviate this aged care emergency problem that we are currently experiencing and that we will experience in the future. I believe that the government is failing to recognise, and certainly failing to act upon, an obvious crisis. I suggest that you probably will do so until the last possible moment. The amendment suggests so.

We cannot afford to allow this to continue. It has nothing to do with funding. The beds are there, they have been approved-you cannot keep blaming the Commonwealth. What I want to know and what the people of the ACT want to know, particularly those people who have elderly relatives and are looking desperately for somewhere to accommodate them in the last years of their lives, is what you are going to do. We want some action. We do not want more words. So could we please stop shuffling the papers and settle down and do some work on this urgent matter?

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