Thursday, 17 October 2024

 Nick STAIKOS (Bentleigh) (17:29): (878) My adjournment matter this evening is for the attention of the Minister for Health, Minister for Health Infrastructure and Minister for Ambulance Services, who happens to be at the table this evening. The action that I seek from the minister is that she visits the site of the new East Bentleigh ambulance station. Some years ago I had a very good conversation with a group of paramedics at the Brighton ambulance station, where I was told that a significant proportion of their call-outs come from my electorate of Bentleigh. This conversation impressed upon me the need for an ambulance station in the Bentleigh electorate, so like all good local members I got to work, and finally we have broken ground on the new East Bentleigh ambulance station, which will be located at Moorabbin Hospital. If you go past there today – I am an East Bentleigh resident and I go past there every day – there is an excavator onsite as we speak preparing the site for major construction. It is an ambulance station that will include a four-bay garage for ambulances, a rest-and-recline area for paramedics to recuperate and also training facilities. The location, I should say, has been carefully selected to ensure that paramedics can respond faster to emergencies in our local suburbs. I am pleased to say that the ambulance station opens next year. I ask that the minister joins me onsite for a visit.