Matt Thistlethwaite (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

We have hit a new low in this place with the notion that we are debating today; and it is ironic, it is Orwellian and it is downright offensive to the people of New South Wales, the constituents I represent in this place, because it is actually the complete opposite of what is occurring in reality. One need only look at today's Sydney newspaper headlines to see exactly what is going on in the New South Wales health system. I refer to an article by Alicia Wood in today's Daily Telegraph with the headline 'Ward and bed cuts at Prince of Wales Hospital'. The article reads:

The state government plans to close a ward and slash 26 beds at Randwick's Prince of Wales Hospital despite assurances that frontline health services would remain intact.

The article goes on:

Staff were advised by an email from Patrick Bolton, the director of clinical services, who said hospital management was "required" to cut bed numbers, close a ward and reduce staffing costs.

That is from today's newspaper. That is what is occurring in New South Wales. Another article from today's newspaper, this time in the Australianwith the headline, 'Prince of Wales loses 26 beds.' It reads:

The NSW health department says it's "consolidating" beds at a leading Sydney hospital but if refusing to comment on claims that 26 beds have been lost.

This follows up from an article in the Sydney Morning Herald by Shaun Nichols of 14 September last year. The headline is, 'Health budget slashed by $3 billion.' It reads:

Thousands of jobs may be axed from the NSW health service as part of deep budget cuts confirmed by the NSW Health Minister, Jillian Skinner.

Just days after the Education Minister, Adrian Piccoli, announced a $1.7 billion funding cut in his department, Mrs Skinner confirmed this morning that $3 billion would be cut from NSW health over the next four years.

They are the facts. This is exactly what is happening in my state of New South Wales. They come in here and seek to blame these health cuts on the federal government when the government is actually increasing funding to the states. In New South Wales, they have increased funding over the next four years to the tune of $1.1 billion—an extra 23 per cent of the base funding for New South Wales. But despite that, the New South Wales government is taking that money and cutting services in particular areas. If you think that the public is unaware of this, those opposite, then you are kidding yourself.

I was alerted to a Facebook page which has been set up in the wake of the health cuts in New South Wales. The Facebook page goes under the name of 'Save Prince of Wales Hospital from Budget Cuts'. I encourage members of the public who are concerned about health cuts in the Randwick and eastern suburbs area of Sydney to visit this particular website and post their opposition. I want to read some of the comments that have been posted on this website by members of the public who understand what these cuts to health services that have been undertaken by the New South Wales government will mean for them.

Belinda Mahony posted on 23 February, 'We actually need more hospitals. Too many people now. Not closure. It is a disgrace what these pen pushers are doing'. Another person posted on 23 February, 'Heard on the radio this morning that Deputy Premier Andrew Stoner got a $50,000 pay rise, and our local hospital, Prince of Wales, is having bed closures and job cuts. Hope our pollies realise this is not the way to go and get their priorities right in serving the people of our great state New South Wales.' They are some of the some of the comments of members of the public. Another one on 22 February, 'And it has started. Bed closures at Prince of Wales Hospital. Prince of Wales Hospital services patients from all over New South Wales. Emergency will be backlogged, elective surgery list will increase.' And it continues with a post from Lyn Williams on 21 February. Lyn Williams is a woman I have much regard for, and who has made representations to me about the concern that she has. She is in a wheelchair and relies heavily on the hydrotherapy pool at Prince of Wales Hospital. That is now under threat because of the cuts to health services in New South Wales. She posts, 'Every day, I hope and pray that sanity prevails and that Minister Skinner reconsiders any planned privatisation of the hydrotherapy pool which I need for my physical and mental wellbeing. Being in a wheelchair is a steep learning and it turns your life on its head. The things I once took for granted came to a crashing halt. I would ask Minister Skinner and the Prince of Wales Hospital board to wheel a mile in my shoes.' Again, another post this time from 20 February: 'Please Minister Skinner, reconsider these cutbacks as, unfortunately, I need my local Prince of Wales Hospital and outpatient hydrotherapy pool.'

They are the facts. This is the voice of the people of New South Wales. These are the people who are facing service cuts to health provisions within their community. Yet, those opposite seek to come in here and waste this parliament's time and move this particular motion. I have had representations from people in my community—from the elderly, from the disabled—who rely on these health services on a daily basis, and they are really concerned. I find it disrespectful that these people, who are facing cuts to their health services and who are distraught, have this motion moved as an insult to the work that they are doing in my community in trying to ensure that health services are not cut. This motion is lazy, it is tardy and it is not factual. In New South Wales, because of federal government outlays the budget in health has increased by $1.1 billion—a 23 per cent increase. When we look at all the other initiatives that this Labor government has undertaken in the area of health to improve services, people see that the arguments put forward by those opposite simply do not stack up.

Federal Labor has increased funding for national health in New South Wales under the Health Reform Agreement. I mentioned the $1.1 billion over four years. We have a commitment to better health care. We have, of course, undertaken the plain packaging reforms and pushed those through—despite opposition from a number of large corporations and despite a High Court challenge—which will result in a healthier society over the longer term. We have invested $4.6 billion in a new public dental health scheme that will provide better services, particularly for children and those from disadvantaged backgrounds who cannot afford to access adequate dental care.

We have reduced the cost of more than a thousand generic drugs, through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. Those drugs include cholesterol, blood pressure and diabetes drugs. We have established an after-hours health help line to ensure that people, particularly in rural and regional areas, who get sick after hours and do not have the wherewithal to travel long distances to hospitals can ring a help line and get the security and assurance that they need to make sure that their health is being looked after.

We have established 60 GP superclinics throughout the country to ensure that we are taking some of the pressure off our hospital waiting rooms and our hospital emergency departments. We have made a big investment in training more doctors and nurses to ensure that we have the adequate resources to look after our population. In that respect, this year alone we have provided the funding for the training of an extra 1,000 general practitioners throughout this country. When Mr Tony Abbott was the health minister he capped that number at 600. An extra 400 positions have been funded and paid for by this federal government to ensure that we have adequate doctors in the system. An extra $500 million is available for training nurses, particularly nurses who are working in aged care and in rural locum services where there are shortages. And, of course, we have means-tested the private health insurance rebate to make sure that that system is much fairer.

That is Labor's commitment to better healthcare services in this country, in stark contrast to what is occurring in my state of New South Wales, where the Liberals are doing what Liberal governments always do. When they come to office they commission these audits and then they cut services. They use the audits as an excuse to cut services, and that is what they are doing in New South Wales.