HEALTH DEPARTMENT BUDGET

Mrs REDMOND (Heysen—Leader of the Opposition) (15:32): My question is again to the Minister for Health and Ageing. Can the minister advise the house whether, and if so by how much, the health budget for the current year has thus far been overspent? The minister undertook 12 days ago to provide an answer to the house about how far over budget the current budget was after the completion of the first quarter on 30 September.

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna—Minister for Health and Ageing, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Arts) (15:32): I have sought the information that the member for Waite asked me. I thank the current acting shadow minister for health for reminding me that I have yet to provide that information to the house. However—

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. J.D. HILL: —why has it taken so long?—it is true that the health budget is tracking pretty much the same way it had in previous years, that the amount of money that is provisioned for health is not sufficient to cover the existing demands. That is why we are going through a savings process, a savings process which they object to. They say we spend too much in health and then when we try to reduce the amount of money they object to that. There is no consistency, they have no policy; in fact, they have had only one policy in 10 years, and that—

Mr VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Point of order: clearly debating the issue.

The SPEAKER: I think the minister has finished his response. Have you?

The Hon. J.D. HILL: Yes.

The SPEAKER: Thank you. The member for Ashford.