House of Assembly Fifty-Third Parliament, First Session (53-1) 53 1 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Hospital Beds Hospital Beds Mr MARSHALL House of Assembly Dunstan Leader of the Opposition Hospital Beds Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:13): Can the minister rule out that, to deal with overcrowding at the Royal Adelaide Hospital emergency department, his government has annexed additional space in radiology, the endoscope suite, Ward S4B, the viewing room for the morgue, the TV room and corridors of the wards themselves? The Hon. J.J. SNELLING House of Assembly Playford Minister for Health Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Minister for the Arts Minister for Health Industries Hospital Beds The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Health Industries) (14:13): I am not going to rule anything out. I have no doubt that, when you have a massive surge in presentations at our hospital, then the clinicians, the nurses and doctors and the people who run the hospital and have responsibility for the care of the patients, utilise every possible space. I have to say that the new Royal Adelaide Hospital, which the Liberal Party has consistently opposed for the last 10 years, will have a massive increase— Mr Tarzia House of Assembly Mr Tarzia: Less beds The Hon. J.J. SNELLING House of Assembly The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: —in space in the emergency department. The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: Minister, would you be seated. The member for Hartley began interjecting earlier today. He is continuing. Accordingly, he is warned a first time—and the interjection should be 'fewer beds', not 'less beds'. The Hon. J.J. SNELLING House of Assembly The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: The new Royal Adelaide Hospital, which has been consistently opposed from the very beginning, has a massive increase in the size of the emergency department. It has more beds. It has a massively increased emergency department. Members interjecting: The Hon. J.J. SNELLING House of Assembly The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: You bunch of—I won't use the word. 'Whited sepulchres' has been used in reference before. Mr GARDNER House of Assembly Mr GARDNER: Excuse me— The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: I'm going to deal with this, thank you. It is a conventional wisdom in this place, promoted by a former premier, that 'whited sepulchres' is a permitted parliamentary term: it is not. I call on the minister to withdraw it. The Hon. J.J. SNELLING House of Assembly The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: I withdraw, sir. But I must say that the gall of those opposite, who have consistently opposed the new Royal Adelaide Hospital, with its massive increase in beds, with its much bigger emergency department, with its dispersed medical imaging, to now be complaining and whinging about the current Royal Adelaide Hospital is rather intriguing, to be honest. Mr MARSHALL House of Assembly Mr MARSHALL: Supplementary, sir? The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: No, a point of order for the member for Heysen. I was trying to find a pause there in order to recognise the member. Ms REDMOND House of Assembly Ms REDMOND: The minister who was then debating the issue was the point of order, sir. The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: That's the point of order? I uphold it.