Page 160 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 12 February 2020
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We are listening to the community. We have been very clear that a lot of work has gone into this site location decision, but, in terms of detailed design, we still have a long way to go.
ACT Health—SPIRE project
MR WALL: My question, too, is for the Minister for Health. Minister, a media piece published on 30 January by former Labor Chief Minister Mr Jon Stanhope claims that the Barr government, in 2015, abandoned plans to deliver an additional 400 hospital beds that were developed by the former health minister and Chief Minister, Katy Gallagher. I quote from Mr Stanhope’s article:
… the identified projects, including the master plan for the site were also abandoned by Labor and the Greens after Gallagher departed. They decided instead to proceed with a significantly watered down proposal known as … SPIRE.
Minister, why did the Barr Labor-Greens government abandon the project developed under former Chief Minister Katy Gallagher from 2015?
MS STEPHEN-SMITH: I thank Mr Wall for his question. It is absolutely true that the 2008 capital asset development plan, that Mr Stanhope referred to, was developed for ACT Health. Many of the projects on that plan have in fact been completed: Centenary Hospital for Women and Children, the Canberra Region Cancer Centre, the southern car park and the adult mental health unit. The list goes on.
Before a point of order is called, we have also invested in some infrastructure that was not envisaged in that plan. I refer to the University of Canberra Hospital, a decision that was made when now Senator Gallagher was here in this place as Chief Minister; that is my understanding. Also, there is the very popular network of nurse-led walk-in centres, of which we recently opened the fourth, in Weston Creek.
As I have mentioned, the most ambitious element of that plan was the demolition and redevelopment of buildings 2 and 3 at Canberra Hospital. This was estimated to be a billion dollar project with very significant impacts on the operation of the hospital during the build phase. So there was significant due diligence undertaken, as you would expect. This work determined that while the original project posed significant challenges and was not actually needed in full at the time, there would be a need for more ED spaces, more intensive care beds and new operating theatres. That is exactly what the SPIRE project will deliver. In addition, the government at that time invested $100 million in upgrading and maintaining existing ACT Health assets to ensure that they also continue to be fit for purpose.
MR WALL: Minister, why is the Barr Labor government proceeding with the SPIRE proposal, which is significantly watered down from Ms Gallagher’s plans, and will it meet the needs of ACT Health?
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