James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I, and also on behalf of Senator Stoker, move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes:

(i) Lady Phyllis Cilento's long and dedicated career as an obstetrician, paediatrician, author, columnist, ABC broadcaster and women's activist,

(ii) her lifelong passion for women and children's health,

(iii) her pioneering work around mother and child care and nutrition, and

(iv) the Queensland Labor Government's shameful decision to rename the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital;

(b) further notes:

(i) 32% of Emergency Department patients at the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital are not seen on time,

(ii) 12% of ambulance patients are ramped at the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital for more than 30 minutes, meaning ambulances are tied up and cannot attend emergency calls during this time,

(iii) 17% of elective surgeries at the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital are not done on time, with a median wait time of 68 days – almost double the state-wide average, and

(iv) the cost to taxpayers of the politically-motivated decision to rename the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital is expected to be at least $500,000;

(c) condemns:

(i) the Queensland Labor Government's failed consultation process, noting that the State Labor Government deregistered the name Lady Cilento Children's Hospital six months before it flagged any intention to change the hospital's name,

(ii) the Queensland Labor Government's use of an online survey to justify a decision made six months previously, and

(iii) the decision by the Queensland Labor Government to subsequently rort the survey responses, with nearly 18,000 'Yes' votes coming from the same 74 IP addresses; and

(d) calls on the Queensland Labor Government to halt its shameful campaign against Lady Cilento's good name, keep the name Lady Cilento Children's Hospital, and to instead spend taxpayer funds on fixing hospital wait times and improving the quality of care at the Lady Cilento Children's Hospital.

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Lady Cilento was an incredible woman, a pioneer in the fields of women's and children's health. She was a household name in Queensland due to her decades of tireless work across a variety of different fields. The decision made by the then Queensland Liberal and Nationals government to honour Lady Cilento by naming the children's hospital after her was the right one. The politically motivated decision by the Queensland Labor government to remove Lady Cilento's name from this hospital is shameful, and their decision to use a rigged, gerrymandered survey to justify this name change is embarrassing. Nearly 18,000 votes, or half the votes in the entire survey, came from the same 74 IP addresses, including some of the same IP addresses as used in Queensland ministerial offices. A total of 6,000 votes from just four computers is alleged. The Queensland state government should be condemned for their sneaky tactics, their attempt to dishonour an incredible woman and their misuse of taxpayer funds. I urge senators to support this motion.

Anthony Chisholm (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Anthony Chisholm (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is another attempt by the government to hide from their own record on health funding. The coalition government is cutting $6.9 million from the Queensland Children's Hospital between 2017 and 2020 alone. This is part of a massive $160 million cut to Queensland hospitals over the same period. The LNP in opposition in Queensland has drummed up a fake scandal about the children's hospital name, because they have no health policies of their own. They are too weak to call out their mates here in Canberra over their hospital funding cuts. The Queensland government changed the name of the hospital to Queensland Children's Hospital following requests from doctors and staff at the hospital and taking into account a range of considerations. The medical staff association had been campaigning to change the name of the hospital ever since the Newman government named the facility, in late 2013, without any public consultation whatsoever. A petition with almost 1,000 staff signatures calling for the facility's name to change was given to the Queensland health minister recently. (Time expired)

Fraser Anning (Queensland, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Fraser Anning (Queensland, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I wish to express my strong support for this motion. Lady Cilento was a truly great Australian and a pioneer in women's and children's health. Perhaps more than anyone else, she richly deserves to have a children's hospital named after her. Queensland Labor's efforts to erase the name of this wonderful Queensland lady from the hospital, especially by using fake surveys and deregistering the name in advance of any purported consultation process, is an absolute scandal. Labor are only too keen to rush to name public assets in honour of has-been Labor Party hacks, like the Clem Jones Tunnel, but take exception to having the name of a real achiever and a great contributor to the lives of so many Queenslanders. The real reason Labor wants to erase the name of Lady Cilento from the children's hospital is precisely because she wasn't one of their hard-left cronies. Lady Cilento was a high-achieving woman who held traditional Christian values. For comrade Palaszczuk and her socialist sisterhood— (Time expired)

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that motion No. 1255 be agreed to.