Page 1331 - Week 04 - Wednesday, 25 March 2009
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Mr Stanhope interjecting—
MADAM ASSISTANT SPEAKER: Order, Chief Minister! Can you keep it down, please?
MR SESELJA: but also to come up with measures at a local level that will assist this process. We have put forward a number of ideas, and I am sure that the committee will be looking at that in their processes. I am sure that all committee members will come to this with an open mind, because I think that is what we need. We need to have new and interesting solutions. There may well be things that no-one has yet thought of that will assist us in attracting GPs, in keeping GPs and in dealing with some of these geographic issues that we know are so significant, particularly in west Belconnen, south Tuggeranong and Gungahlin, where we know that there are the most acute shortages.
Once again, I commend Mr Hanson for bringing forward this motion. He has been leading the charge on a number of issues in health. We are pleased that there is now tripartisan support for the establishment of a committee process to look into this very important issue. But we simply cannot sit on our hands. We cannot do as the minister has done—
Members interjecting—
MADAM ASSISTANT SPEAKER: Could you sit down again for a minute, Mr Seselja. Chief Minister, Ms Gallagher and Ms Porter, I have asked you not to conduct conversations in the chamber. It is extraordinarily difficult to hear. If it is so important, you can go out into the lobby.
Mr Stanhope: There was nothing worth listening to, though, Madam Assistant Speaker.
MADAM ASSISTANT SPEAKER: Chief Minister, if you want to have conversations, go out into the lobby.
MR SESELJA: I suppose it is a little bit different from the last time we spoke about this and when, in fact, the Chief Minister got thrown out of the chamber. He was so upset that they had not put forward any reasonable policies in this area and had been beaten to the punch that he apparently could not hear the Speaker when he told him to shut up; so that is interesting. The difference in approach is also interesting. We have seen a government and a minister who simply have said there is nothing they can do on these issues, and they have really offered nothing.
Government members interjecting—
MR SESELJA: Sorry, I am struggling to hear the interjections. There is too much noise here; it is really difficult. If only one person could interject at a time, it would be easier to hear the retorts from the health minister.
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