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23 Aug 2005 Questions Without Notice 2563 Queensland Ambulance Service Mrs PRATT: My question is to the Premier. Acknowledging that this is not his portfolio, but in his position as Premier of this government will he guarantee the wives and partners of ambulance personnel who are wanting to become whistleblowers due to the stress understaffing has placed on their families that anyone employed within the Ambulance Service will not be penalised through job loss, demotion or lack of promotion for the actions of their concerned partners? Mr BEATTIE: I am sensitive to ensure that people who have legitimate complaints within the public sector have an opportunity to air them. In the Health area, for example, one of the recommendations I am hopeful that will come forward from both Peter Forster and Tony Morris is better ways of dealing with complaints from people within Health, including whistleblowers. There is always a fine line between people who are genuine and people who are mischievous. We all know that. Not every whistleblower or person who claims to be a whistleblower is fair dinkum. There are people with political agendas, there are people with genuine axes to grind, there are personality conflicts—there are all sorts of things. That is just life. Each one of the departments is a microcosm, if you like, of life generally. In terms of people who are fair dinkum whistleblowers, the answer is that as a government we support them, we support the whistleblowers legislation and we are supporting in both the health inquiries a better mechanism to deal with them. In terms of the particular cases that the member referred to, I understand the minister has been across to talk to her to try to get copies of the letters with the names crossed out. I do not know whether the member knows this, but any member on this side could have moved this morning that she table the letters she had in her hand. Under the standing orders, the member would have had to have done that. We did not do that, frankly, out of courtesy to the people who had written to the member who we regard, until we know otherwise—and I do not know why we would end up with an ‘otherwise’—as genuine. We did not seek to either embarrass the member or embarrass them. If the member is asking me ‘Are genuine whistleblowers protected?’, the answer is yes. In terms of some of the matters that the member has raised locally—and she is talking about current staffing issues—I have talked to the minister about this because I heard what the member said this morning in her two-minute speech and about the letters. He says that there are some issues due to staff sicknesses and annual leave at the Kingaroy Ambulance Station. Indeed, there is one officer in charge who has been on extended sick leave. One paramedic has recently accepted medical retirement. There is another paramedic who is on sick leave as well whilst awaiting processes at WorkCover. So there are a number of people who are ill at the station at the moment, which is putting pressure on the station. The minister has indicated to me that he will follow these matters up and do the best he possibly can to support the employees and work through these issues with the member. I have a longwinded set of facts here and all sorts of other things with which we can make ourselves as a government look terrific. I am not going to do that. What I am simply going to say to the member is that there are some issues due to sick leave at the station she referred to. If the people whose names she read out are the partners of those officers, then I urge the member to provide copies of the letters, without referring to who they are, to the minister and let us see if we can give them the support they are entitled to. We will support them. We are not interested in trying to victimise or punish anybody. We actually want to ensure that the people who are providing lifesaving services are supported and that is what the minister will do. Mr SPEAKER: Before I call the member for Capalaba, can I on behalf of every member of this House welcome into the gallery the veterans and friends from the Gaythorne RSL Club in the electorate of Ferny Grove. They are here today as part of Seniors Week. Welcome to you all. Household Water and Energy Efficiency Mr CHOI: My question without notice this morning is to the Minister for Environment, Local Government, Planning and Women. In light of the worsening drought in south-east Queensland and the government’s commitment to take the lead on this issue, can the minister advise the House what is being done to encourage household water and energy efficiency? Ms BOYLE: I thank the member for Capalaba for the question. He is a member who has taken a particular interest in sustainability and particularly water issues, I might say. On the topic of water, we know that pretty much everyone in south-east Queensland and in many other spots around the state knows that water and energy need to be conserved. I am sure that many members of the House have noticed that the Beattie government has announced yet another plank in its sustainability agenda with the requirement from 1 March next year that all new homes in Queensland will have greenhouse efficient hot-water systems, energy efficient lighting, AAA rated shower roses, dual-flush toilets and water pressure limiting devices. There are those who want to minimise the contribution that householders can make house by house around Queensland and they do so in error. The water savings really do add up. Using a AAA rated shower head saves
2564 Members’ Ethics and Parliamentary Privileges Committee 23 Aug 2005 15,000 litres of water a year compared to a standard shower head in one house. A dual-flush toilet saves 33,000 litres a year compared to a single-flush toilet. We know that many new homes already use AAA rated shower heads and dual-flush toilets, but the mandate will capture all new homes. For people in areas with high water pressure, water pressure limiting devices will save 8,600 litres a year per home. The savings continue to stack up when rainwater tanks are considered. Using a rainwater tank for outside purposes, such as gardening or washing the car, saves 63,000 litres a year per home. These are real savings. There is much discussion around the state of Queensland on the supply side of water, but really we have to think, too, of what we can do on the demand side. If we are to use rainwater tanks, if we are to take up these simple measures not only through the mandating of them in new housing but also voluntarily through refurbishments in all housing, then we can make a very significant difference. Some councils have already led the way. I offer congratulations particularly to the Gold Coast, Brisbane and Toowoomba councils which have not only asked for these measures to be mandated; they are also promoting them to householders already and they are providing incentives for refurbishments of existing homes. The energy savings are also considerable. Using a solar or electric heat pump hot-water system will reduce energy use by about 30 per cent and save householders about $200 a year on their energy bills. After 12 years savings from all new houses will be the equivalent to a small coal-fired power station. Mr Mickel interjected. Ms BOYLE: I can hear the minister for energy cheering in the background. Bundaberg, Mental Health Services Mr MESSENGER: My question without notice is to the Minister for Health. I refer the minister to the arbitrary closure of the Bundaberg mental health in-patient facility where once again Bundaberg and Burnett residents’ lives are being placed at risk. Who made the decision to play Russian roulette with my constituents’ lives? Will the minister now advise if any community consultation took place regarding this decision, which forces families to travel hundreds of kilometres each week to visit their loved ones? Mr ROBERTSON: I reject the premise advanced by the member for Bundaberg. The Bundaberg Integrated Mental Health Service has not been able to provide in-patient service for involuntary inpatients from Wednesday, 17 August— Mr SPEAKER: Sorry, minister, he is the member for Burnett. Mr ROBERTSON: Sorry. This has been brought about by the resignation of a principal house officer on 3 August, which has caused a staffing issue. I can assure the member that recruitment of a suitably qualified medical officer is continuing as a matter of urgency. But in the meantime I am informed that four involuntary in-patients have been transported to the Sunshine Coast integrated mental health service to ensure that patients in the member’s area receive continuing care. That is obviously a responsible thing to do. I am informed that the level of services to all community based patients has been reviewed and enhanced if clinically required, and discussions have commenced with local general practitioners to help support community based care in both the short and the long term. It is unfortunate in terms of what has happened with respect to mental health services in Bundaberg. We are committed to the continuation of those services. That is why we are pulling out all stops to ensure that a new appointment can occur in the shortest possible time. That is why I reject the premise advanced by the member for Burnett. These matters are outside our control. But, importantly, the hospital administration in Bundaberg has moved quickly to ensure that patients requiring ongoing treatment can continue to receive it in the short term. Mr SPEAKER: Order! That is the end of question time. MEMBERS’ ETHICS AND PARLIAMENTARY PRIVILEGES COMMITTEE Matter of Privilege Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER (Mr Fouras): Honourable members, on 10 August 2005 the member for Warrego wrote to the Speaker alleging that the Speaker, in his former capacity as the Minister for State Development and Innovation, deliberately misled Estimates Committee B by omitting to supply details of the Financial Innovation Growth Program in answers to questions on notice relating to grants funding and programs. The Speaker delegated decision making in this matter to me. A complaint for deliberately misleading the House or a committee of the House must provide some basis for demonstrating not only that an omission has been made but also that the omission is
Page 1 and 2: PROOF ISSN 1322-0330 WEEKLY HANSARD
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Page 5 and 6: 2536 Papers 23 Aug 2005 PAPERS PAPE
Page 7 and 8: 2538 Ministerial Statement 23 Aug 2
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Page 47 and 48: 2578 Transport Legislation Amendmen
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Page 51 and 52: 2582 Housing Legislation Amendment
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Page 55 and 56: 2586 Succession Amendment Bill 23 A
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2646 Adjournment 23 Aug 2005 Finall
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