❓ The Minister for Health provides an update on regional hospital improvements, highlighting investments in Tom Price, Paraburdoo, Laverton, Geraldton and Bunbury, while criticising the previous government's health infrastructure record.
AnsweredQoN 794Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
HEALTH — INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT
794. Ms A.E. KENT to the Minister for Health:
I refer to the Cook Labor
government's record investment in health services, including $14.3 billion
in additional funding in the last three years.
(1) Can the minister update the house on the delivery
of improvements to hospitals in regional Western Australia, including at
Tom Price?
(2) Can the minister advise the house whether she is
aware of any alternative proposals to deliver improvements in WA
hospitals?
794. Ms A.E. KENT to the Minister for Health:
I refer to the Cook Labor
government's record investment in health services, including $14.3 billion
in additional funding in the last three years.
(1) Can the minister update the house on the delivery
of improvements to hospitals in regional Western Australia, including at
Tom Price?
(2) Can the minister advise the house whether she is
aware of any alternative proposals to deliver improvements in WA
hospitals?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I thank the member for Kalgoorlie for her question
and her advocacy for her community, particularly for the delivery of
regional health care. This government is delivering care closer to home for
regional communities and has doubled the amount of cancer services delivered in
regional communities since coming to government. We have also invested record
funding into improving the infrastructure across 2.5 million square kilometres and hundreds of sites, some of which are
very, very remote. One of those sites is Tom Price Hospital, the
redevelopment of which was committed to by former Premier Mark McGowan in 2021
in partnership with Rio Tinto, which has provided $20 million to support the
Tom Price Hospital project. This year, the Cook government committed to the
redevelopment of not only Tom Price Hospital, but also the neighbouring
Paraburdoo Hospital, which is relatively close and is also in need of an
upgrade. Again, that is with an additional contribution of $20 million from Rio
Tinto for each of those hospitals.
I am pleased to inform the house that
the government has just awarded the contract for early contractor involvement
to Cooper and Oxley. This is a really exciting step forward for that project.
We expect the groundworks to commence soon. That is as well as the Laverton
Hospital redevelopment in the member's electorate. We have already
awarded the contract for forward works for that project, which will start this
year. The redevelopment of Geraldton Health Campus is also well underway.
Members can see that it is coming out of the ground as we speak. The contract for
the redevelopment of Bunbury Regional Hospital has also been awarded. Those
works will commence early in the new year. They are all projects that the
Liberal and National Parties did not even touch in the eight and a half years
they were in government. They did not go near them.
In
this term of government, we delivered the brand new Newman Health Service. That
is a beautiful regional health campus
in Newman. We have delivered the Albany radiation oncology service, which
delivers more radiation oncology closer to home for the residents of
Albany, we have upgraded Collie Hospital—it has beautiful new theatres—and Dongara, Plantagenet, Cranbrook,
Boddington, Dalwallinu and Wongan Hills Hospitals, as well as provided
another 30 beds at Bunbury Regional Hospital. It has been a record for
investment and activity in our regional hospitals.
We recently saw an op-ed from the
Leader of the Liberal Party in which she strangely interpreted the Langoulant
report as being reasonably good for the former Liberal–National
government! She wrote that it was —
� found to be well-managed and
provided good value for money, while some were seen as evidence of risky
decision-making.
Clearly, the Leader of the Liberal
Party read the 900-page damning report as an endorsement of her former government. Let us run through some of those risky
decisions that the former Liberal–National government made.
Fiona Stanley Hospital's $4.3 billion —
Ms L. Mettam interjected.
The SPEAKER : Order, please.
Ms A. SANDERSON : One was the
$4.3 billion Fiona Stanley Hospital contract with Serco with no business case.
It privatised the whole hospital with no business case. Perth Children's
Hospital had asbestos in the roof and lead in the water.
Dr D.J. Honey interjected.
Ms A. SANDERSON : That is your
record.
The SPEAKER : Minister, pause
for a moment. Member for Cottesloe and member for Vasse, your interjections are
incessant. It makes it difficult for Hansard to record proceedings and for
other people to hear. Please do not continue to interject. This is not your
question.
Ms A. SANDERSON : Thank you,
Madam Speaker.
We all know that Perth Children's
Hospital had asbestos in the roof and lead in the water. The Queen Elizabeth II
Medical Centre car park was privatised by that government and it is now almost
impossible to resolve parking issues on that
campus and there are questions over the, I quote, ''value for money''
of that project. There was a 20- year contract to privatise St John of
God Midland Public Hospital, without any sterilisation procedures. The former
government failed to include the $27 million cost of earthworks for the
Karratha Health Campus. The Cook Labor government delivers record
infrastructure responsibly and appropriately for those communities. We do not
just go off and privatise things with no business case; we do it responsibly.
Unlike this government, there is a Liberal
candidate out there who has a plan for another hospital—that is, the Liberal candidate for Dawesville. He made a social
media post yesterday saying that not only will he get the upgrade done
for Peel Health Campus, but also he will start a brand new hospital in Peel—a
brand new hospital in Peel!
Mr R.H. Cook : That sounds
expensive!
Ms A. SANDERSON : Yes, it
does!
The Leader of the Liberal Party has
lost control. She has lost control. Is it going to come out of the $400 million magic pudding that is already paying for the
Nationals WA's promises as well as the Liberal Party's
promises? Now we have candidates promising brand new hospitals in their
seats. They cannot be trusted on health. Labor delivers beds and more staff,
improves infrastructure and builds new hospitals. These guys—the
Liberal Party and the Nationals—privatise and promise the earth but
they never deliver.
and her advocacy for her community, particularly for the delivery of
regional health care. This government is delivering care closer to home for
regional communities and has doubled the amount of cancer services delivered in
regional communities since coming to government. We have also invested record
funding into improving the infrastructure across 2.5 million square kilometres and hundreds of sites, some of which are
very, very remote. One of those sites is Tom Price Hospital, the
redevelopment of which was committed to by former Premier Mark McGowan in 2021
in partnership with Rio Tinto, which has provided $20 million to support the
Tom Price Hospital project. This year, the Cook government committed to the
redevelopment of not only Tom Price Hospital, but also the neighbouring
Paraburdoo Hospital, which is relatively close and is also in need of an
upgrade. Again, that is with an additional contribution of $20 million from Rio
Tinto for each of those hospitals.
I am pleased to inform the house that
the government has just awarded the contract for early contractor involvement
to Cooper and Oxley. This is a really exciting step forward for that project.
We expect the groundworks to commence soon. That is as well as the Laverton
Hospital redevelopment in the member's electorate. We have already
awarded the contract for forward works for that project, which will start this
year. The redevelopment of Geraldton Health Campus is also well underway.
Members can see that it is coming out of the ground as we speak. The contract for
the redevelopment of Bunbury Regional Hospital has also been awarded. Those
works will commence early in the new year. They are all projects that the
Liberal and National Parties did not even touch in the eight and a half years
they were in government. They did not go near them.
In
this term of government, we delivered the brand new Newman Health Service. That
is a beautiful regional health campus
in Newman. We have delivered the Albany radiation oncology service, which
delivers more radiation oncology closer to home for the residents of
Albany, we have upgraded Collie Hospital—it has beautiful new theatres—and Dongara, Plantagenet, Cranbrook,
Boddington, Dalwallinu and Wongan Hills Hospitals, as well as provided
another 30 beds at Bunbury Regional Hospital. It has been a record for
investment and activity in our regional hospitals.
We recently saw an op-ed from the
Leader of the Liberal Party in which she strangely interpreted the Langoulant
report as being reasonably good for the former Liberal–National
government! She wrote that it was —
� found to be well-managed and
provided good value for money, while some were seen as evidence of risky
decision-making.
Clearly, the Leader of the Liberal
Party read the 900-page damning report as an endorsement of her former government. Let us run through some of those risky
decisions that the former Liberal–National government made.
Fiona Stanley Hospital's $4.3 billion —
Ms L. Mettam interjected.
The SPEAKER : Order, please.
Ms A. SANDERSON : One was the
$4.3 billion Fiona Stanley Hospital contract with Serco with no business case.
It privatised the whole hospital with no business case. Perth Children's
Hospital had asbestos in the roof and lead in the water.
Dr D.J. Honey interjected.
Ms A. SANDERSON : That is your
record.
The SPEAKER : Minister, pause
for a moment. Member for Cottesloe and member for Vasse, your interjections are
incessant. It makes it difficult for Hansard to record proceedings and for
other people to hear. Please do not continue to interject. This is not your
question.
Ms A. SANDERSON : Thank you,
Madam Speaker.
We all know that Perth Children's
Hospital had asbestos in the roof and lead in the water. The Queen Elizabeth II
Medical Centre car park was privatised by that government and it is now almost
impossible to resolve parking issues on that
campus and there are questions over the, I quote, ''value for money''
of that project. There was a 20- year contract to privatise St John of
God Midland Public Hospital, without any sterilisation procedures. The former
government failed to include the $27 million cost of earthworks for the
Karratha Health Campus. The Cook Labor government delivers record
infrastructure responsibly and appropriately for those communities. We do not
just go off and privatise things with no business case; we do it responsibly.
Unlike this government, there is a Liberal
candidate out there who has a plan for another hospital—that is, the Liberal candidate for Dawesville. He made a social
media post yesterday saying that not only will he get the upgrade done
for Peel Health Campus, but also he will start a brand new hospital in Peel—a
brand new hospital in Peel!
Mr R.H. Cook : That sounds
expensive!
Ms A. SANDERSON : Yes, it
does!
The Leader of the Liberal Party has
lost control. She has lost control. Is it going to come out of the $400 million magic pudding that is already paying for the
Nationals WA's promises as well as the Liberal Party's
promises? Now we have candidates promising brand new hospitals in their
seats. They cannot be trusted on health. Labor delivers beds and more staff,
improves infrastructure and builds new hospitals. These guys—the
Liberal Party and the Nationals—privatise and promise the earth but
they never deliver.
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