Page 1512 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 7 May 2008
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MR SPEAKER: Mr Seselja, quiet, please.
MR STANHOPE: What a shameful position to be expressed.
The position that has been put is a $24 million investment. When you think about it, $24 million is more than 25 per cent of each of the annual budgets for them by the Liberal Party in their last term in government. That one initiative, $24 million, for the community sector is more than 25 per cent of the entire budget in each of the last three years of the Liberal Party.
Mr Smyth: Because we spent six years cleaning up—
MR SPEAKER: Order, Mr Smyth!
Mr Corbell: Capital.
MR STANHOPE: Capital budget, yes. It is more than one-quarter of the Liberal Party’s entire capital budget in each of its last three years in office. It is probably why there is now so much pent-up demand for accommodation—
Mr Smyth: Because you’ve done nothing for seven years.
MR SPEAKER: Order, Mr Smyth!
MR STANHOPE: because in its period in government the Liberal Party did absolutely nothing to build or develop infrastructure.
The government intend to consult. We are going to consult on all the options. Of course, there is a significant and increasing need in this community for aged care accommodation—for housing for the aged, in other words. The government is committed to seeking to support aged care accommodation, particularly at Rivett and Mount Neighbour. We do not resile from that. The minister has undertaken to negotiate and consult with those communities around aged care and the form of aged care and around the community’s attitudes to aged care facilities.
We know the Liberal Party’s attitude to housing for the aged. In seven years in government, they delivered 14 aged care beds—two beds a year. I can understand that they are uninterested in the possibility of providing housing for the aged. They are not interested in providing housing for the aged. In seven years in government, they provided 14 aged care beds, two a year over seven years.
We see the same dismissive attitude to aged care today. The government says, “Yes, we are interested in considering housing for the aged on some of these sites.” That is a quite reasonable expectation, I would have thought—and a strong need. The Liberal Party dismiss the possibility of aged care accommodation being provided on these sites—out of hand, without consideration—because they think that there is a cheap political point to be had in dismissing the possibility and running scare campaigns. We see it all around the place. If there is an opportunity for some affordable housing initiatives—
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