Page 2389 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 30 July 2019

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video

Let us go through the community and let us have a proper inquiry under the auspices of this Assembly. This is what parliaments do. They do not ram through legislation because young ministers get a bee in their bonnet about something. They deliberate on it and they make sure that the community is consulted and brought along with it. That is what parliaments do and that is what committee inquiries are for.

This legislation will be groundbreaking but there is no reason that we cannot delay it until the end of this year to allow a proper committee inquiry to fact-check the provisions of this bill, the issues the minister says he has consulted on and the issues raised by the opposition. It is utterly important that this legislation is referred to committee for inquiry and report.

Question put:

That the motion be agreed to.

The Assembly voted—

Ayes 9

Noes 12

Miss C Burch

Mr Parton

Ms Berry

Mr Pettersson

Mr Coe

Mr Wall

Ms J Burch

Mr Ramsay

Mrs Dunne

Ms Cheyne

Mr Rattenbury

Mr Hanson

Ms Cody

Mr Steel

Mrs Jones

Mr Gupta

Ms Stephen-Smith

Mrs Kikkert

Ms Le Couteur

Mr Milligan

Ms Orr

Question resolved in the negative.

Debate interrupted in accordance with standing order 74 and the resumption of the debate made an order of the day for a later hour.

Sitting suspended from 12.05 to 2.00 pm.

Questions without notice

ACT Health—SPIRE project

MR COE: I have a question for the Minister for Health. In 2016, the Labor Party election commitment regarding SPIRE was that it would be built at a cost of $500 million at the Canberra Hospital. Minister, what is the revised budget for the SPIRE project and will it be delivered according to that election commitment?

MS STEPHEN-SMITH: I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. The SPIRE project specific budget is not public to the last dollar. That is because there will be, of course, a procurement process. We have said that it is at least a $500 million project. It is going to be the largest investment in health infrastructure, I understand, since the beginning of self-government. The scope of the SPIRE project at the Canberra Hospital will include 114 emergency department treatment spaces,

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video