Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Hansard source

I want to thank the member for Grey, who's been a great champion for hospital and medical services in his electorate and right across South Australia in regional and rural towns. In particular, I know that, like many people, he was distressed when power was lost at the Port Augusta Hospital due to the incompetence of the South Australian government, and this joins the long list of South Australian hospitals to have the lights turned out: Royal Adelaide Hospital, the Flinders Medical Centre, Mount Gambier and so many others.

Fortunately, we have been investing whilst they have been failing. At this level, across South Australia, we've invested a 26 per cent increase in support for South Australian hospitals—a 26 per cent increase, whilst the Weatherill government increased South Australian expenditure by six per cent over that same period. In the last full financial year, they decreased health expenditure by $7½ million. That's the reality of what is happening under Labor.

It compares with the investment that we have put in and it compares with the growth which, in the member's own electorate, is even larger than the state average. Whereas our contribution has been an increase of 26 per cent on average across South Australia, within the member for Grey's electorate the local hospital district has seen a 31½ per cent increase in funding under us.

What we see there is a very clear statement of commitment to health, commitment to funding and reliability under us, compared to not just an utter failure of investment but a complete failure to be able to keep the lights on in South Australian hospitals. This isn't trivial; this is fundamentally significant. It goes to a test of competence as a government, competence as economic managers and competence as people running a medical system.

On top of prisoners being shackled in hospitals for days and people waiting for mental health beds for days, today we have the latest revelation about the Fawlty Towers that is the Royal Adelaide Hospital.

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