Question Time

ROYAL ADELAIDE HOSPITAL

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Leader of the Opposition) (14:19): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Leader of the Government, the minister representing the Treasurer and the minister representing the Minister for Health a question about the new Royal Adelaide Hospital.

Leave granted.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: On 7 April this year, in a conference room in the Terrace Towers building, there was a crucial meeting of the South Australian Development Assessment Commission. The minutes of that meeting are available on the Development Assessment Commission's website. They show that the commission met to consider the government's—or at least the joint venture's—development application for the new Royal Adelaide Hospital. The Parliament of South Australia will be interested to know that the Development Assessment Commission has not approved this new hospital. Without development approval, not one brick can be laid, not one foundation dug, not one pile driven into the ground.

The government has signed a contract for a hospital which does not have Development Assessment Commission approval. As it turns out, the commission wants major changes to the hospital proposal; some of these could cost millions of dollars. It wants a reconsideration and revaluation of the hospital's Green Star rating. This brand-new building, this showcase for the future in Mike Rann's supposed green energy state, has an energy efficiency rating of just four stars. That is not good enough for the commission, and it wants the government and the hospital to achieve five stars. That is despite the health minister's false claim that hospitals do not have star ratings.

The commission also wants landscaped areas on the roof for energy efficiency and to reduce visual pollution. It wants stormwater and waste contained on site. It wants air quality monitoring before construction starts and strict limits on carbon monoxide emissions. It wants a significant increase in rainwater capture; in other words, it wants bigger rainwater tanks. It is worried about the ring road that will run through the grounds, which the commission says will impact upon pedestrian safety. Also, quite reasonably, it wants details of pushbike storage for our cycling community.

The commission's meeting on the hospital finished like this, 'The applicant,' it said, 'will require fresh consent before commencing or continuing the development if it is unable to satisfy these requirements.' My questions are:

1. Why sign a $3 billion contract without Development Assessment Commission approval?

2. Clearly, the Macquarie Bank document makes it clear that any variations initiated by the government will be at taxpayers' expense. What is the still secret additional cost of meeting these other additional requirements?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Public Sector Management, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister for Gambling) (14:22): I thank the honourable member for his important questions and will refer those to the relevant ministers in another place and bring back a response. However, it would be remiss of me if I did not make just a couple of very brief comments in relation to this very important initiative. The new Royal Adelaide Hospital will be the most advanced hospital in the state, and will lead the nation and the world in efficient health care for many decades to come. This is a hospital that has been built to meet the future needs of South Australia. The new Royal Adelaide Hospital will be a purpose-built hospital—

The Hon. D.W. Ridgway: So the other one wasn't purpose built?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Purpose built for a new century. The opposition wants to look behind them, at an old building riddled with asbestos that is out of date and is no longer efficiently meeting our clinical needs. It is an out-of-date and outmoded building construction. We are building a hospital to meet our future needs. It will provide more efficient and effective measures for running the hospital, it will be better for patient care, and there will be improved mechanisms for infection control. It will be a bigger hospital with more beds, more operating theatres, and more ED capacity. It will also be easily adaptable for future growth and change.

We know that it will be more efficient to operate and it will use less energy and water, and I have been advised that there will be a 40 per cent reduction in CO₂emissions. There will be the use of smart technology, and I draw members' attention to some of the very special features that have been planned for this new facility: there will be automatic guided vehicles and mobile communication devices such as smartphones, iPads and wireless throughout; and there will be inpatient beds that actually weigh patients. Currently, most patients have to be taken out of their beds to be weighed, which can be extremely uncomfortable for them. It will also do simple things like maximise natural light and air.

We know that the Royal Adelaide Hospital healthcare system current demand is under a lot of pressure. We know that there have been 35 per cent more ED presentations in the last seven years and also 35 per cent more in separations. So, we have built this important state-of-the-art facility, which will be adaptable—

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins: No, you haven't. You haven't built it.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: We plan to build it for the future. It will contain a flexible modular design. It will be built to modern standards, and I understand that it will also be able to withstand an earthquake. It will have the capacity for future growth and it will be adaptable as medical technology and other patient care demands advance.

This will be South Australia's biggest hospital also for country patients. It will be the state's biggest hospital for country patients, as the Hon. Paul Holloway mentioned in an earlier contribution. On any given day, 500 country inpatients in metropolitan hospitals receive treatment, and 22 per cent of overnight patient stays at the Royal Adelaide Hospital are country residents.

We know that this facility is strongly and highly used by country people. So, it is not just a hospital for the metropolitan area and surrounds, it is also a hospital for our country areas. This government has made a major contribution and investment to the healthcare needs of South Australians, something we should all be very proud of, and most of us are, except for a few nay-sayers across the chamber from me.

In terms of health investment, I think it is important to point out that this government has provided more funds for health: $46 billion in 2010-11, and that is up 114 per cent since we took over government, a 114 per cent increase in funding from 2001-01. There are more nurses and midwives, an issue that is very dear to my heart, a 39 per cent increase in nurses and midwives since 2002, so I am advised. There are 49 per cent more doctors since 2002 and 54 per cent more allied health and scientific professionals since 2002.

So, as you can see, this government has made a particularly strong commitment to the healthcare needs of South Australians, and it will continue to do that by putting before South Australians a plan to build this new facility with comprehensive healthcare services to meet the future needs of South Australians.