Western Victoria Region
Bev McARTHUR (Western Victoria) (12:21): (786) My constituency question is for the Minister for Health, and it concerns the disastrous financial situation of hospitals across my electorate. We know that the Treasurer has already demanded cuts – ‘financial management’ and ‘improvement plans’, as the doublespeak goes – but the upcoming budget is inspiring real fear. The catastrophic impact of Labor’s inability to manage money becomes clearer by the day, and regional Victorians suffer most. In Western Victoria I hear alarming reports that money given by local benefactors for specific requests will be siphoned off as operational cash – this at a time when forced amalgamation of rural and regional hospitals is threatened. So, Minister, can you confirm that current regional health service board members have been required to sign non-disclosure agreements preventing them from sharing information with communities they represent on what would be deeply unpopular and damaging mergers?