Patient Assistance Transport Scheme

Mr TRELOAR (Flinders) (15:08): My question is to the Minister for Health. Can the minister guarantee the state government will spend the full allocation of the promised $2.5 million annual increase in the Patient Assistance Transport Scheme?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Health Industries) (15:08): No, I can't because, as the member for Flinders knows full well, it's not a bucket of money that we throw out and people get to spend. It's spent upon application so, of course, if we had a smaller number of people making applications for funding assistance, then we would spend less than that but, likewise, if we had more people making applications for spending, then we would spend more.

It's a demand-driven figure. It's based upon the number of applications. The $2.5 million is an estimate of how much we think it will cost, based upon the changed criteria but nothing more than that. There may be fewer applications; there may be more applications. It may cost more; it may cost a little bit less—we will find out. What I can guarantee to the house is that we will honour the commitments that I have made to expand the criteria, as I have previously set out in my public statements.

The SPEAKER: Members may be pleased to know there were more than 50 opposition questions asked today.