Health Services

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (15:02): I direct my question to the Minister for Health and Wellbeing. My question is: will you, minister, rule out privatising any hospital and any clinical services?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (15:02): Let's be clear—

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: Yes or no.

The PRESIDENT: Minister, sit down. You cannot scream out putting, 'Yes or no.' You should know. You have a law degree, minister, and you should know that you cannot—well, I assume you have—put questions, 'Yes or no.' Please restrain yourself during question time. Minister.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: The Marshall Liberal government has made it clear that we will not be privatising any public hospital, going forward. In relation to services, how dare the Labor Party come in this house and preach against privatisation? We have a $2.4 billion hospital built on the western part of Adelaide, with a $12 billion, 40-year project—a partnership with the private sector—vehemently opposed by the ANMF, one of its, shall we say, ideological fellow travellers. The fact of the matter is that the ANMF has vigorously opposed Labor's privatisation through their PPP. The fact of the matter is that we won't take lectures from the Labor Party, which has so appallingly managed the health system over the last 16 years, and the privatisation through the PPP is only one of many examples.