House debates
Thursday, 18 March 2010
Personal Explanations
3:44 pm
Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Yes, by the Prime Minister.
Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
The Prime Minister, in his dissertation on health today and in question time as well, referred to the PET scanner at the Royal North Shore Hospital and said that it took 11 years for us to make a promise. I was first approached in 2004 about this program by Paul Roach, the acting Professor of the Department of Nuclear Medicine. The now Leader of the Opposition, Tony Abbott, as Minister for Health and Ageing, met those people in 2007. He met Associate Professor Paul Roach, Dr Chris Arthur and a number of other representatives on 29 June 2007. As a result of that meeting, he committed $3.5 million in funding for a new PET scanner at the Royal North Shore Hospital. I should add that the money was allocated when this government came in, but I and the members of the Royal North Shore professional nuclear medicine department were so concerned—
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Order! The member must go directly to where he was misrepresented and without debate.
Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
It is. The Prime Minister said—
Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Predictably, my point of order is that the member must go directly to where he has been misrepresented and stick to that point and then resume his seat.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
I know the member for North Sydney is aware of the requirements and I will listen carefully to what he says from now on.
Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
The Prime Minister and the Minister for Health and Ageing said that we did nothing. In fact, I seek leave to table a letter from me to the health minister on 5 March 2009 concerned that 16 months after funding was allocated nothing had happened.
Leave not granted.
I seek leave to table the response from Jan McLucas, saying that they could not get around to it.
Leave not granted.
And, finally, I seek leave to table a press release from Northern Sydney and Central Coast Health, where it says, ‘We also enjoy the support of Joe Hockey, who assisted us in securing the funding.’
Leave not granted.
I am sorry you’re all a bunch of hypocrites.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Order! There is no need for those comments on the way out.
3:47 pm
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Yes, on a number of counts.
Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
First of all, there were some false claims made in question time today about my record on public hospital funding. For the record, let me just correct the misrepresentation. The Howard government in 2004-05 gave $7.95 billion to public hospitals and in 2007-08 we gave $9.76 billion to public hospitals. In total, it was a $10 billion increase over the period. There was a further misrepresentation when the Prime Minister claimed that I had had nothing to do with the cancer centre in Darwin. I am quoting from the Care newsletter by the Northern Territory Cancer Council:
On 30 March Minister Burns signed a formal agreement with Federal Health Minister Abbott that should see construction of the Radiation Oncology Unit begin later this year, and hopefully operational by early 2009.
I delivered my part; members opposite did not. I further clarify the misrepresentation by quoting the leading doctor, who said: ‘I haven’t met Tony, but certainly things got going when he was health minister. It’s certainly the version I tell patients.’
Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Ms Roxon interjecting
Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Health Services, Health and Wellbeing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
It’s actually true and you don’t know what you’re talking about.
Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Order! The member for Boothby is not getting the early plane.