RIVERLAND INDIGENOUS HEALTH SERVICES

Mr WHETSTONE (Chaffey) (17:01): Given the minister's answer that he was unable to find suitable staff to carry out the funding, did the minister personally consult with the Riverland Division of General Practice before that decision?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health and Ageing, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for Defence Industries, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (17:02): No, I did not. I do not go out and personally consult with everything that goes on within my department, but I think the member for Chaffey is confusing two things. I think he is confusing the first part of the program, which was the audit, on which I think the Riverland general practice might have something to say, and the simple fact is that, with regard to their particular issue, that funding was always expected to be time limited. It always had an end date. It was a specific project for an audit of medical records in GP clinics to ascertain health outcomes for Aboriginal people. It was always time limited.

With regard to the second element, I do not think that would have had much to do with the Riverland general practice. I am open to correction. I need to check the advice from my department, but that was a specific program for which we needed to recruit workers in order to deliver the service. We advertised, and I think there might have been several rounds of advertising to try to recruit suitable staff, and the department was not able to do that. That does not mean that that money has just been pocketed. That money has been diverted into other areas of Aboriginal health where we think it can be better used.