John Cobb (Calare, National Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture, Food Security, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let us make no mistake about it: if the state of health care in the central west of New South Wales was given a check up, the findings would be far worse than a cough, a bump or a dodgy knee. The New South Wales health system clearly disregards those west of Penrith and is clearly the worst health system in Australia. I have spoken before about some of the stories that have come out of my electorate—babies being born on the side of the road, nursing staff borrowing medical equipment from local vets, doctors paying for patient procedures and war veterans waiting days in emergency for a bed. It is certainly a long list and it is not getting any better.

Back in August 2007—nearly three years ago now—Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the buck would stop with him. He said he would put up his hand and take responsibility. Of course, back then everybody was willing to give the now Prime Minister the benefit of the doubt. But now we know differently. Whilst the details remain sketchy on the proposed healthcare system, there is one thing I and the people of central west New South Wales will not stand for, and that is further neglect and further closure of health facilities in regional New South Wales.

Whether it is out in the seat of Parkes, the seat of Calare or anywhere else in New South Wales, closure of health facilities in regional towns and cities also represents a partial closure of those towns themselves. Can you imagine the destruction if the 117 health facilities named in last Friday’s Daily Telegraph were to close? That list obviously came from the New South Wales government. These facilities, according to a senior New South Wales official, would be forced to close because they do not meet the efficient price standards laid out by the Minister for Health and Ageing.

I call on the Prime Minister to guarantee to the people of these regional towns and cities that their facilities will not close. He said that the buck stops with him. I call on him to guarantee it and I call on the health minister to do the same. No fewer than 17 of these facilities fall in the current electorate of Calare, with two more in the new electorate of Calare—19 in total. That is 16 per cent of the total list which fall under my responsibility in New South Wales. These are communities of value to this country—places as big as Parkes, Portland, Cowra, Burke, Lithgow, Condobolin, Narromine and Forbes. It is unbelievable. On top of that, the pressure which will be lumped on the ones which are left, which will basically be Dubbo, Orange and Bathurst, will overload those already totally overloaded facilities to just a ridiculous degree. It is worrying that even the New South Wales government, responsible for what is currently the worst healthcare system in the country, is trying to get its fingers on the scheme.

I would also like to mention the community of Forbes—another community on the list of those threatened by the government’s new health system. Back in 2004, Forbes was promised funding for a new hospital by the then state Minister for Health, Morris Iemma. In 2008, planning finally commenced. It is now 2010 and this project is obviously going nowhere as far as the current state government is concerned. The only response that same government is giving is that the money will be given when it becomes available. A lot of things are going to have to happen in New South Wales before they can turn things around enough to have any money available. The people of Forbes want answers, they want control and they want a new hospital. They have been promised it and they deserve it—not only that, they need it and so do those people west of Forbes. The coalition’s plan gives them control—local representatives making local decisions and accountable members of the community, not another layer of bureaucrats or more broken Labor Party promises.