Page 3551 - Week 11 - Thursday, 22 September 2005

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .

---

I will let the argument rest there. I enjoyed your response, Mr Stanhope, but I did not really believe it. Those are my concerns.

Question put:

That Dr Foskey’s amendments be agreed to.

The Assembly voted—

Question so resolved in the negative.

Amendments negatived.

Clause 67 agreed to.

Debate interrupted in accordance with standing order 74 and the resumption of the debate made an order of the day for a later hour.

Sitting suspended from 12.29 to 2.30 pm.

Visitors

MR SPEAKER: I acknowledge the presence of year 10 students from Canberra Girls’ Grammar School.

Questions without notice

Hospital bypasses

MR SMYTH: Mr Speaker, my question, through you, is to the Minister for Health. Minister, in the eight months to the end of August 2005 the Canberra Hospital was placed on ambulance bypass 41 times and Calvary Hospital was placed on bypass 11 times. Thus, in total there have been 52 occasions of bypass in eight months. As access block is the usual cause of bypass, it follows that in the last eight months there have been high levels of access block. Minister, why have your much-vaunted reforms failed to address access block and ambulance bypass?

MR CORBELL: I thank Mr Smyth for the question. The government continues to address issues in relation to access in our public hospitals. As members would be aware, even as recently as the most recent budget the government outlined an ongoing access improvement program which is designed to address system issues in the hospitals to ensure that access to acute care is continually improved. Members would also be aware

---

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .