Chemotherapy Treatment Error

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:16): My question is to the Premier. Was SA Health acting as a model litigant when its initial offer to the McRae family last year was for only $10,000, being $5,000 to the late Mr McRae and $5,000 to his family?

Mr van Holst Pellekaan interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Stuart is warned.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier) (14:16): Just for the information of the house, the way in which these claims are handled is through the South Australian government insurer. That is the mechanism by which compensation claims of this sort are entertained. In these particular cases, these very sensitive cases, at the time when these difficulties were revealed, we assured people that we would conduct ourselves as a model litigant. I think it is pretty clear, from all that we have seen, that we have not conducted ourselves in that fashion.

I think, frankly, that it would be of benefit if there was stronger oversight from our health department but, because this matter was put into that part of government that deals with compensation claims, I don't think it received the sensitivity of treatment, or certainly the urgency of treatment, that it needed. That's something we are going to reflect upon because—

Mr Marshall interjecting:

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: It certainly—

Mr Pisoni interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Unley is warned.

The Hon. P. Caica interjecting:

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: That's something that—

The SPEAKER: The member for Colton is warned.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —we will reflect upon to make sure these circumstances don't arise again. But as soon as the minister and I became aware that there were concerns being raised about the litigation process, we intervened immediately. That is why there was an offer generated and clarity was given about the question of legal costs.

There is no doubt and there is no hiding from the fact that the state, however you want to describe its manifestations, didn't behave as a model litigant in this case. I know that the minister's office certainly reached out to a number of the affected parties, but he, like I, accepted the assurances that the state, in its compensation frame, was behaving as a model litigant. It has become clear that we haven't, that there have been, I think, inappropriate delays—

Mr Pengilly interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Finniss is warned.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —in the generation of offers. I think in circumstances where you are talking about life-threatening illnesses, a special expedition needs to occur. I think also in cases where there has been a manifest and egregious fault on behalf of the state, that also requires a special form of attention.

It is not as though there is a mere misadventure with somebody slipping up in a foyer of a government office, which doesn't have any particular moral element to it. Here, we made a mistake. Indeed, that mistake was compounded by the fact that it was hidden, in circumstances where people were suffering life-threatening illnesses. So proper care should have been taken and we—

Ms Chapman: Yesterday you stood there and tried to cover that up, Jay. You pretended you were Mr Perfect.

The SPEAKER: The deputy leader is warned for the second and final time. If she makes another utterance that is not in accordance with standing orders, she will tread the same path as yesterday.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: In circumstances where there is an enormous and justifiable anger and emotion about this matter, we have sought to respond sensitively and quickly to the people affected. All I can do is offer my apologies on behalf of the state for the way in which the people who have been affected by this mistake have been treated, and we are doing everything we can to make that right.