Annastacia Palaszczuk’s broken promise on hospital beds
The Courier-Mail can reveal there is still no concrete timeline for the extra beds promised to struggling southeast Queensland hospitals by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk in her 2017 poll pitch. The Opposition is calling the pledge a “cruel hoax”.
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A 370 hospital beds bonanza that formed a central plank of the Palaszczuk Government’s election strategy won’t be delivered in this term of Government.
The Courier-Mail can reveal there is still no concrete timeline for an extra 192 beds for the busy Logan Hospital or an additional 130 beds for the growing Caboolture Hospital promised by Annastacia Palaszczuk in her 2017 poll pitch.
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And the business case for a new 50-bed mental health facility for Ipswich Hospital is not yet finished.
A week after southeast hospitals were thrown into crisis, Health Minister Steven Miles admitted roll out of its much-hyped health plan – described by a campaigning Ms Palaszczuk as a “very high priority” – won’t be until 2020 to 2023.
News that patients won’t have access to most beds until after the next state poll in October 2020 prompted the Opposition to label it a “massive broken promise”.
Both hospital redevelopments and the new mental health ward had expected completion listed as “to be determined” in a Question on Notice to the Parliament this week.
Mr Miles told The Courier-Mail business cases had been done for Logan and Caboolture hospitals and construction was “expected to start” in 2020 but a business case for the Ipswich expansion was still being done.
“Queensland Health’s tender process will further inform the construction timeline,” he said.
“All projects are on track and additional beds (at Logan and Caboolture) will gradually come online from 2020 to 2023.”
Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington said voters had been lied to about promised upgrades that were years away.
“This is a massive broken promise from Annastacia Palaszczuk,” she said.
Opposition health spokeswoman Ros Bates said it was a “cruel hoax” that Labor had concentrated on changing the name of the Queensland Children’s Hospital as a priority instead.
Ms Palaszczuk was last week forced to admit that two days in which 10 southeast Queensland hospitals were at capacity Code Yellow did amount to a “crisis”.
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