Page 1248 - Week 04 - Thursday, 4 May 2006
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community’s budget and the reasons why we have to go about this process of restoration. When we left office in October 2001, the budget was in surplus and there was cash in the bank. Inexplicably we are being denied access to the detailed review of the performance of the Stanhope government.
The hypocrisy of the Chief Minister is now well and truly on the table following his handling of the report from Mr Costello. Despite his cries of running an open and transparent government and all his protestations about being accountable, Jon Stanhope continues to refuse to release the Costello report. Unfortunately for the ACT community, a combination of his refusal to run an open and accountable government and the development of rumours about what is in the report has created considerable uncertainty and disquiet. The Costello report on the ACT community has created doubts, uncertainties and concerns about the future, which would not have been the case if the Costello report had been released.
The Chief Minister is not able to resolve any of these doubts, uncertainties or concerns because he refuses to release the vehicle that would do so. If he had the courage that he should have as Chief Minister of this territory—as Trevor Kaine had and as Morris Iemma has—he should be competent to engage the community in discussion and debate about the issues raised, and the recommendations made, in the Costello report. Unfortunately, Jon Stanhope fails that test of courage and leadership.
Instead, in a pathetic attempt to retrieve some leadership on the issue, he has attempted to draw the teeth of the sustained criticism from the community about the release of the Costello report by allowing Mr Costello to provide selective briefings to a small group of businesspeople and trade unionists. This exercise in sham consultation did nothing to allay the concerns of the community. On the contrary, the fact that Mr Costello told the truth to people at these briefings has resulted in the Chief Minister prohibiting Mr Costello from talking to anyone else about the report on the review of the ACT budget.
The inevitable release of information from those two briefings and the generation of rumours arising from the review are now increasing concern within the community. There are estimates of a budget deficit of $190 million in the outyear. If that were not bad enough, we also understand that Mr Costello said that, unless substantial savings are made in health—and I acknowledge Mr Stanhope’s comments about health—the prospective deficit would be much higher.
To add to the concerns, the conversion of the ACT budget to the government financial statistics, or GFS, means that any deficit in the outyears will be magnified as a result of the exclusion of such parameters as revenue from land sales and gains in the superannuation provision account from the outcome for the general government sector. Let us not unduly complicate the situation at the moment. I am sure the Chief Minister is grappling with current accounting standards, let alone government financial statistics. However, let us consider spending by this government in the health portfolio since it came to office. We will use the numbers in the existing budget papers.
What is the history of the Stanhope government’s spending in the health portfolio? In 2002-03 the original budget was $462 million. The outcome was $515 million—a hike of $53 million. In 2003-04 the original budget was $468 million. The outcome was
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