Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Hansard source

I am proud of our investments in Queensland health. The 2013-14 budget showed continued investment: $13.2 billion extra going into the Queensland health system. It is extra money into not just the system but also the buildings. We have $100 million in the member for Moreton's own electorate at the QEII hospital to redevelop the emergency department and for new palliative care beds and a brand-new endoscopy unit. There is $400 million for Townsville Base Hospital and $220 million for Logan Hospital. We have made a choice to invest in better health services for Queenslanders.

But there is a very stark contrast. Campbell Newman's first budget cut $3 billion from the Queensland health system and sacked more than 4,000 Queensland health workers. Queenslanders were hoping for a bit of relief this time around. They were thinking that maybe the Queensland government realised that it had cut too deeply last time and it would reverse some of those cuts. But there was no such luck. Unfortunately, I have to tell you that an extra $241 million was required to invest in hospitals just to stay still—not to go backwards—just because of population growth and inflation. That has fallen short by $137 million.

That means the equivalent of 6½ thousand hip operations that will not get done, or 7,000 knee operations that will not get done. I will tell you that on top of that, when you look at page 21 of the Queensland budget papers, it shows that on top of those fewer operations there will be 70,000 fewer outpatient services in Queensland hospitals this year—70,000 fewer outpatient services in Queensland hospitals. I table the budget documents that show that.

In this press release here, they promised to do 40,000 more outpatient services; in fact they will do 70,000 fewer, and I table that press release. Patients will miss out on palliative care, they will miss out on pain management and they will miss out on the specialist clinics that are held in hospitals for outpatients.

And, when it comes to local hospital districts, $36½ million is out of the member for Dickson's own local hospital district. Is he going to protest that? Is he going to complain? Is he going to stick up for his residents, or is he going to sit there silent, like he has done for years now? And, not just in Metro North but in Wide Bay and right across Queensland, the Sunshine Coast and the south-east coast, this is just the curtain-raiser to Tony Abbott's cuts. The Leader of the Opposition cut hospital funding last time he had the chance and he would do it again.

See this speech in context