Page 572 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 24 February 2010
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The reality is that the minister’s plan would have delivered no better health outcomes to the people of Canberra and it would have cost us $77 million. The actions of the government, from secret negotiations before the last election through to the threats to choke funds from the hospital and build another hospital and the use of Clare Holland House as a sweetener really speaks of very poor public process.
Our priority should be to deliver the best possible public health services to the people in the north of Canberra. This can be done without threatening to withhold funds to Calvary in the future, without threatening compulsory acquisition, without spending $77 million on a public hospital that is already there and without selling Clare Holland House. The minister failed to develop a plan B. She now has a lot of work to do to restore the confidence of the community.
I have proposed a number of amendments, which I have circulated. I move:
Omit all words after “That this Assembly”, substitute:
“(1) notes:
(a) the Government’s plan to purchase Calvary Hospital and sell Clare Holland House has collapsed;
(b) that the plan would have delivered no health benefit to the ACT and would have cost ACT taxpayers $77 million; and
(c) the ACT Labor Government has not developed any alternative proposals despite the high risk of their plan failing;
(2) calls upon the Minister for Health to work with Little Company of Mary Health Care (LCMHC) to deliver the necessary investments at Calvary Hospital that will provide enhancements to health services required to meet the demands of an aging and growing population in the north of Canberra;
(3) calls on the Minister for Health to rule out compulsory acquisition of Calvary Hospital;
(4) calls on the Minister to examine funding options in partnership with LCMHC that would mitigate the Government’s concerns in relation to budgetary implications of future capital investments; and
(5) thanks the Sisters and the Board of the LCMHC for their preparedness to work with the Territory to prepare for the future health needs of our community.”.
MS BRESNAN (Brindabella) (11.26): The Greens recognise and support efforts by the ACT government to expand public health care on the north side of Canberra. It is unfortunate that a solution could not be found via earlier discussions.
The Greens have never expected a perfect outcome, and each party to this sale has expressed different ideas about what is the perfect outcome. We were working to
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