Page 2598 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 7 August 2013
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Canberra Hospital and then they got it wrong when they looked at the site at Quamby and, for various reasons, it had gone from the $11.6 million to $30-odd million. The price of this project had tripled to $30 million for a 15-bed facility. The government decided at that stage to take it away, and that was the minister's decision.
Then after allocating $3.2 million for the design of the facility in the 2012-13 budget, the Labor Party promised a 15-bed secure mental health facility at the 2012 election. There was an announcement back in 2005. They took it to the 2008 election. They took it to the 2012 election, and the policy stated:
This new operational funding, follows a commitment by ACT Labor to build a new 15-bed secure mental health facility. Design is currently underway for the facility with a preferred location to be at the former Quamby site and this design work is expected to be finalised by next year. It is anticipated that the new facility will be opened in 2016.
So at the last election in 2012, based on what was first promised, a six-year delay was anticipated. But between the election and April 2013 the plans and the budget changed again and a new proposal was put forward. The new proposal, which is the current proposal as I understand it, is for a 25-bed facility at a cost of $24.6 million to be completed in 2017. So the current plan for 2017 represents a seven-year delay on what was first promised. This means it is a promise that has been made at three elections without ever being delivered—the 2008 election, the 2012 election and the 2016 election, and that is the best case.
Given the project has been subject to delay every step along this process, I think it would be very bold to lock ourselves into that 2017 figure. Based on the way the government is delivering this project, a more realistic assessment would probably be in 2021 after yet another election.
The new model encompasses 25 beds, of which 15 beds are medium security and 10 are low security, rather than the 15 high security beds as originally proposed. We will continue to look in to this project, but I think that that is, on the surface, a better way to deliver this project. It is probably going to meet a greater demand of need within our community. Regardless, based on what the government is currently offering, that is 12 years, at best case, for this facility to be operational since it was first promised by Simon Corbell and Jon Stanhope.
Not only has it taken eight years for the government to stop dragging their feet, it has taken a number of serious incidents. We have raised this issue repeatedly in this chamber—and Mr Smyth before me—and in other forums. But it seems it is only after a number of serious incidents have occurred that it will progress. We have seen a very unfortunate death in custody at the AMC and a disturbing number of assaults on nurses at the mental health unit at the Canberra Hospital. The Canberra Times has been following this issue and they should be commended for some of the work they have done in highlighting it in our community. The Public Advocate has also renewed calls for some action to be taken.
It is really only after it was highlighted in the media and the government was facing media pressure and after the very disturbing case of the death in custody at the AMC
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