Page 2930 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 16 October 2007
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MR STANHOPE: In the context of reinstating those 114 beds—indeed, funding 147 beds—we have taken expenditure on health in the ACT from under $500 million to just under $800 million in six years in government.
MR SPEAKER: Come to the subject matter or wind up.
MR STANHOPE: I am coming to the subject matter. In our time in government, we have replaced all of the beds which the Liberals closed—all of the beds which they closed. We have added another 30. We have actually provided an additional $300 million of funding for health within the ACT.
Mrs Burke: Mr Speaker, I raise a point of order. I refer to standing order 118 (b). Can he stick to the question? The question was: “How can you reconcile the cost of an additional 100 acute care beds in your latest budget at $150,000 a year with your claim today of $540,000 for each of the additional beds,” et cetera. We just want the answer.
MR SPEAKER: Order! I am sure the Chief Minister heard the question.
MR STANHOPE: I have answered the question.
MR SMYTH: What a failure. Mr Speaker, I have a supplementary question. Chief Minister, when will you correct the record on this matter and concede that 100 additional beds, by the costing in your budget, will cost only $15 million a year?
MR STANHOPE: The costings that I provided were provided to me by the department of health. I do not have them with me here. What I do know is that in the space of a week the Liberal Party, in promising to open immediately 100 beds at a cost of $54 million—with the promise by the shadow Treasurer to forgo $16½ million from the utilities tax and the promise by Mr Pratt to forgo $22 million—will drive the ACT budget into deficit in one year. The Liberal Party has undertaken in its first year to—
MR SPEAKER: Chief Minister, come to the subject matter of the question, please.
Mr Smyth: You can’t answer the question. You’ve misled the house.
MR SPEAKER: Order! Withdraw that.
Mr Smyth: I withdraw.
Hospitals—bed numbers
MR MULCAHY: Mr Speaker, my question is to the Acting Minister for Health. Minister, I refer to the recent publicity about the number of beds that are available in our public hospitals. On 9 October 2007 on ABC radio, Professor Peter Collignon said it was his belief that it was possible there were many areas that could be resurrected from administrative, teaching and research areas and converted back to accommodate
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