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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-03-02 Daily Xml
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SA Ambulance Service

Mr PICTON (Kaurna) (14:43): My question is to the Premier. Why do the government's own budget papers reveal that this government is cutting funding to the SA Ambulance Service budget? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr PICTON: The government's own budget papers show that SA Ambulance Service funding has declined by $23 million in two years. In 2018-19, it was $208.1 million. In 2019-20, it was down to $195 million and, in the last year's state budget, it was down to $184.5 million—a reduction of $23.6 million in operating funding in just two years.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Minister for Education) (14:44): I am grateful for the opportunity to take this question on behalf of the Minister for Health. Obviously the member is aware—he was part of the cabinet for a brief period of time under the former government—of the way—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: —the Treasury papers work in relation to a budget.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The minister has the call.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: If he's struggling to remember he can ask the member for West Torrens, who I think was Treasurer at the time and set in place a certain set of figures. Indeed, since coming to government, this government has invested further funds in ambulances, has supported the refreshing of the fleet, and has indeed ensured extra paramedics.

As we talked about before in the Premier's earlier answer and in my earlier answer, we have spent the last two years and 11 months working every day to enhance the position of the people of South Australia, to repair the degradation on the health system and the ambulance system left by those opposite and, indeed, to restore the South Australian public's confidence in a health system that the member for West Torrens as the Treasurer—

The Hon. S.C. Mullighan interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Lee will cease interjecting.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: —the member for Croydon as the health minister, and the member for Kaurna as the senior adviser—Chief of Staff I think—

Mr Malinauskas interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The leader will cease interjecting.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: —to the minister for Transforming Health, left in such a state of disrepair, left in a state where nobody in South Australia had any confidence in their capacity to deliver the health services that the people of South Australia expected, deserved and desired. The Minister for Health, the entirety of the SA Health workforce and the health department across South Australia have worked very hard over the last several years. We have been confronted, of course, with the most significant pandemic to confront our nation or the world in 100 years and they are working hard every day to pass the test that is expected of them by the people of South Australia to deliver great services.

We have a comprehensive plan, as we identified before, to enhance the capacity and to enhance the practice that is delivering for the people of South Australia that will seek to reduce ramping. When I think of the enhanced emergency departments at the Lyell McEwin and Modbury, when the enhanced emergency department—the brand-new emergency department—at The QEH—

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: Point of order: standing order 98, sir, debate. The question was very specific about why there has been a $23 million budget cut to the South Australian Ambulance Service.

The Hon. J.A.W. Gardner interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Does the minister rise on the point of order?

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: I will wait until your ruling, sir.

The SPEAKER: I have the point of order. I will deal with the point of order, Minister for Education. The question referred to budget allocations in successive years. The minister is addressing the question. The Minister for Education has the call.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: The government will continue its strong investments in the SA Ambulance Service, its strong investments in improved emergency departments, which of course have a direct correlation with the impacts of the issue that the member is asking about. That is why we are improving the emergency department at the Lyell McEwin, that is why we are improving services at Modbury Hospital, so that residents in the north-east can have that improvement. It is why we are delivering a massive, massive upgrade to the emergency department at the Flinders Medical Centre, an upgrade that is currently underway that is impacting on capacity right now, but when complete it will see a dramatic improvement—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Lee!

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: —an upgrade that if it had been invented by those opposite when they were in government, we wouldn't need to be doing this work now, and we wouldn't be confronted by that problem now. But for 16 years those opposite were in government and for 16 years they failed the people of South Australia. They left us with a mess and we are getting on with fixing it.

The SPEAKER: Before I call the member for Kaurna, I warn for a second time the leader. The member for Lee can leave for 20 minutes in accordance with standing order 137A.

The honourable member for Lee having withdrawn from the chamber:

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