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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2019-04-03 Daily Xml
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Country Health Services

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (14:51): Supplementary: will the support for regional health services include support for the Keith hospital, or will their emergency department close within days?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (14:51): I am ever thankful for the ongoing stream of Dorothy Dixer questions I get from the opposition. The honourable member wants to contrast her former Labor colleagues, John Hill and Jack Snelling, who both cut the spending to the Keith hospital, with my record.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! Show some respect for the supplementary from the Labor front bench. Minister.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: In contrast to minister Hill—

The Hon. K.J. Maher interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! Leader of the Opposition, I just called you to order. That does not mean a two-second pause.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: I take the honourable Leader of the Opposition's point. He doesn't want to hear the answer. If that's the view of his side, I will sit down.

The PRESIDENT: Don't bait the Leader of the Opposition. Get on with the answer, minister.

The Hon. K.J. Maher: Open under Labor: closed under Wade. That will be great.

The PRESIDENT: Leader of the Opposition, I don't need the commentary. I don't need the commentary and, minister, don't bait the Leader of the Opposition. It is a good question and an important answer, I am sure. Please proceed with your answer.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: The honourable member is asking me to account to this council for our resourcing of the Keith hospital, and I am proud to do so, because in contrast to two of the last three Labor ministers, who cut—

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! The minister has latitude and the minister is entitled to answer the question as he so chooses, which was asked by the Labor front bench. Minister.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: I can understand the embarrassment of the Leader of the Opposition at the wanton neglect of country health for so many years. I can assure you that the people at the Keith hospital—

The Hon. I.K. Hunter interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: The Hon. Mr Hunter, you are trying my patience today. Please, I can't hear the minister.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: The people at the Keith hospital well remember when John Hill cut their funding. The people at the Keith hospital well remember when Jack Snelling cut their funding. What they also remember is that I gave an additional $400,000 emergency funding last December. Let's be clear: that was in addition to the $1 million base funding. That was in addition to the $1 million—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. S.G. WADE: Childish, childish, childish—$1 million base funding.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! You are disrupting the minister in his answer.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: The embarrassment of the opposition is clear to see. I can understand it. Jack cuts, John cuts, the Liberal Party is giving $400,000 emergency funding, a 40 per cent increase in that funding, in this financial year alone.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! I call you to order. This was a question asked by the Hon. Ms Scriven—a question from your side. It is reasonable for members of the council to assume that the Labor members wish to hear the response to their own member's question. Minister.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: Mr President, I would ask you, please don't sit me down. If they keep asking Dorothys, I have the right to bat them back.

The PRESIDENT: Do not bait them, answer them.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: They are so embarrassed: John Hill cut, Jack Snelling cut and—

The Hon. I.K. Hunter: Are you going to close Keith down? Tell us what you're going to do.

The PRESIDENT: The Hon. Mr Hunter, please!

The Hon. S.G. WADE: —I have increased the funding of the Keith hospital by $400,000 of emergency funding—$400,000.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! Calm down. Order! I am going to allow the minister to answer. I am no longer timing the minister.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: Thank you for your latitude, Mr President. I will make the point: the Keith and District Hospital is not a state government hospital. The Marshall Liberal government is keen to strengthen health services in the country; that is why we are investing in the McLaren Vale district hospital, that is why we are investing in the Ardrossan hospital and that is why we are investing in the Keith hospital.

We are investing this financial year, in base funding, $1 million and then emergency funding of $400,000. No other hospital in South Australia is getting a 40 per cent increase in their budget, particularly no private hospital with state government money. I made it clear to the Keith hospital at the end of last year that they need to manage their budget. If the Labor Party wants the wanton disregard for budget management that infected the public hospitals under their watch to infect private hospitals, the whole system will collapse and not just the public health system.

Funding has been increased by the emergency funding and, unfortunately, it has been spent three months early. I wrote to the board in December last year and I said, 'The money that will be available will be the last payment for 2018-19.' I said, 'I would encourage the Keith and District Hospital to adjust the level of services, at least in the short term, if it is not able to fund all of the services it currently delivers through to 30 June.'

What was I doing? What was the appalling thing I was doing? I was asking a hospital, which had already spent its $1 million base funding, that is now receiving an additional $400,000—a 40 per cent increase—'Could you please stay within the $1.4 million.' Isn't that shocking? On top of that, what I got last week was a letter from the Tatiara council, on behalf of the Keith hospital, asking next year, as well as having the 40 per cent emergency funding built into their base funding, for it to be increased by another 10 per cent.

If the honourable members opposite want to urge us to increase the funding for the Keith hospital by 50 per cent, I would like them to explain to me: how do I explain that to every other South Australian patient requiring services from SA Health?

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: I would like silence to be maintained for the Hon. Mr Frank Pangallo.

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