Stewart McArthur (Corangamite, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am pleased to rise in this place tonight to recognise and commend the government’s decision to provide 120 medical school places to Deakin University’s Waurn Ponds campus within the electorate of Corangamite. I also acknowledge, Mr Speaker, your contribution and support in this particular project. The funding decision represents a colossal investment for Geelong and will break the Victorian monopoly on medical training held by the University of Melbourne and Monash University. The decision will make Deakin University Victoria’s first rural and regional medical school. The establishment of a medical school at Deakin University will be important in attracting some of the best young minds to Geelong and will attract new health and educational sector investment to the Geelong region.

I was pleased to be able to join Deakin University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sally Walker, together with Professor John Catford, Dean of Deakin University’s Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences, at the official announcement by the Prime Minister of the medical school funding at the Liberal Party’s Victorian State Council in April. I was delighted that the Prime Minister was kind enough to endorse my contribution and acknowledge my role in the government reaching this decision.

In addition to the 120 medical school places, the Prime Minister announced a one-off $18 million capital works grant to Deakin University, subject to matching funding from the Victorian government, to assist the university in establishing the required new facilities. Some of the new medical school places at Deakin University are expected to be available within two years. The Deakin University medical school announcement is part of the $250 million commitment by the Howard government over four years to train more doctors and nurses and includes the provision of 400 new medical school places per year across Australia.

I commend the professional manner in which Vice-Chancellor Professor Sally Walker and Professor John Catford went about lobbying and arguing their case for the medical school places at Deakin. Deakin University spoke to everyone who had an important role in making this final decision. They consulted successfully with local members of parliament, not only me on the government side but also the member for Corio from the opposition. Deakin University also presented a strong case to Victorian Liberal senators.

Importantly, Deakin University put together a very strong, well-constructed argument for providing new medical school places in regional Victoria. There is an undersupply of medical school places in Victoria and a shortage of doctors in country areas. The argument was put very strongly that Victoria should be the place in Australia where these doctors should be trained and that argument was won in the early part of this important debate. There is a good body of research to show that country people who have trained in a rural and regional environment are more likely, when qualified, to choose to live and practise in country towns. In this regard, Deakin was a natural choice in Victoria for a regional medical school.

To strengthen the case, Deakin University formed alliances with Geelong Hospital and with hospitals in Hamilton and Warrnambool in the electorate of Wannon, in which you, Mr Speaker, were very helpful. These alliances will strengthen the rural practice element in the medical training. I also note the good performance of the Deakin School of Nursing, which has produced graduates since 1985. I supported their proposals at that earlier time. As the local member, I was very pleased to put forward two very strongly worded written submissions to government ministers to support the Deakin University medical school proposal and I personally advocated the case with both the Minister for Health and Ageing and the Minister for Education, Science and Training.

This major investment in the Deakin medical school demonstrates the Howard government’s commitment to addressing the shortage of regional doctors not only in Geelong and western Victoria but Australia-wide. This is a wonderful outcome for the enthusiastic vice-chancellor, Professor Sally Walker, and her hardworking team. I commend the proposal and—along with you, Mr Speaker—I am delighted that the Prime Minister and the government have supported such a magnificent proposal.