RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS - Queensland Parliament ...

31 Oct 2012 Appropriation (Parliament) Bill; Appropriation Bill 2327
have? We have the LNP government sacking public health nutritionists. Through the chair: Minister, you
know that is disgraceful. Public health nutritionists undertake a degree at university in relation to
nutrition.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER (Mr Berry): Order! Member for Bundamba, you have to refer your
comments to the chair.
Mrs MILLER: I will. The minister knows that public health nutritionists undertake a lengthy
degree, and now there are many students throughout Queensland who will have no opportunity at all for
work in the public health system.
Finally, I want to talk about hospitals. I just want to know how many hospitals in Queensland this
government has an agenda to shut. In my own local area, people are telling me that the hospital at Esk
and the hospital at Boonah are under threat. And I would like a guarantee from this minister that he will
make sure BreastScreen services right across this state are maintained. In conclusion, the time for
blame is over. You have been elected to govern. Get on with it.
(Time expired)
Mr DILLAWAY (Bulimba—LNP) (10.16 pm): I rise this evening to speak in support of the report
tabled by the Health and Community Services Committee. This report outlines the proposed
expenditure pertaining to the portfolios of National Parks, Recreation, Sport and Racing; Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander and Multicultural Affairs; Health; and Communities, Child Safety and Disability
Services. I take this opportunity to congratulate the member for Redlands on his role as chair of the
committee and to thank in particular all of the government members of the committee for their
contribution to the estimates process. I would also like to thank the respective ministers, their
departmental officers and the officers of the statutory bodies for their openness and accountability
regarding their portfolios.
When elected into government earlier this year we made a commitment to the people of
Queensland that we would get the state’s finances back on track. Despite the dire financial situation of
$65 billion in debt that the former Labor government generously left the people of Queensland and our
new Newman government to manage, this once-in-a-generation budget is still able to deliver on many
valuable initiatives.
Mr Crandon: Did you say $65 billion?
Mr DILLAWAY: I did indeed. Considering the tight fiscal circumstances our government has been
left in, we have still managed to deliver a significant commitment to Queensland Health, with a budget of
$11.862 billion. This is significant because it is an increase of some 7.38 per cent from last year’s
budget that will see many positive outcomes. These include the commencement of the hospital and
health boards; funding of $1.3 billion for the construction, expansion and redevelopment of Queensland
hospitals; improved access to emergency and specialist care; and increased funding for the Patient
Travel Subsidy Scheme, amongst many others. This of course is all against a backdrop of the everincreasing
payroll system liability, which will reach $1.253 billion by 2017—a payroll system that saw our
hardworking health professionals overpaid, underpaid or not paid at all.
It is enlightening to see that the Leader of the Opposition has today released the long-awaited
cabinet documents about which we passed a motion some months ago. What is disappointing is that we
have had to wait and the committee did not have a chance to fully explore the impact of this debacle
during the estimates hearing in order to understand what recourse we have to recover any moneys from
parties that could be held liable. Time will tell, of course, whether the information that has now been
provided to the House will alleviate the need for further investigation as recommended by the
committee.
The appropriation for the Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport and Racing is enabling
the delivery of the Get in the Game initiative that encourages greater active participation in sport and
recreation. As Bulimba is home to many junior and senior sporting clubs, I am particularly excited about
how this program will deliver real benefits to those clubs and members alike. With three children of my
own and as an avid sportsperson, I believe that the broader benefits of this initiative are far reaching. It
is proven that participation in sport reduces the impact on the health system and reduces the risk of
young people going off the rails by engaging them with peers in a team environment that has a clear
structure.
I did find it disappointing that in the non-government members’ statement of reservation they felt
there was an insufficient amount of time allotted to examine the portfolio, especially considering that all
members of the committee were present at our pre-estimates meeting where we all agreed on the time
frames to review each of the committee’s four portfolios. But moving on, I also commend the
appropriation for the Department of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and Multicultural Affairs. I make
particular note of the key funding initiative that will support the continued development and growth of
strong multicultural communities across Queensland. This includes the new format of having a week-