Calvary Hospital offered 4 hectares, new hospital before negotiations broke down

Calvary Public Hospital offered the ACT four hectares on which to build a new facility before negotiations over the forced takeover broke down.

Lawyers representing Calvary Public Hospital have accused the ACT government of orchestrating an “active, hostile takeover” of the Catholic facility.

Calvary Public Hospital offered the ACT government four hectares on which to build a new facility before negotiations over the forced takeover broke down, correspondence referencing the “complex relationship” between the warring parties reveals.

Calvary Health Care chief executive Martin Bowles wrote to ACT Health Minister Rachel ­Stephen-Smith saying he was “surprised” by the request to ­acquire the Bruce site and made a counter offer to hand over four hectares or to build a new hospital in Canberra’s north “faster and cheaper”, which it would run for a 25-year term, court documents show.

Mr Bowles also acknowledged that Calvary’s relationship with the ACT government had been complex but they had “always found a way to work through any of these complexities, in our collective commitment to providing the best possible services to the community of the ACT”.

“The land you requested is far more than what has been discussed or foreshadowed in the extensive meetings which have occurred between our teams and more than what is required for the new public hospital and expansion space,” Mr Bowles wrote in the letter dated November 28.

The ACT Supreme Court released hundreds of pages of documents, including letters and emails between the ACT government and Calvary Health Care, revealing new details of the breakdown in negotiations, as the full bench considers a legal bid from the Catholic health provider to halt the forced acquisition of the hospital site.

Catholic leaders have criticised the ACT government for setting a dangerous precedent by forcibly taking over Calvary hospital, which has come under scrutiny for its stance on voluntary ­assisted dying and abortion.

Calvary Hospital had previously said negotiations with the ACT government had failed after months of trying to reach an agreement, with last month’s announcement that the government was taking over the site leaving church leaders “stunned and shocked”.

ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr wrote to Mr Bowles in May telling him that the government would forcibly acquire the site and noting that the 25-year term had become a “red line” for Cal­vary, adding that government would not support an agreement term longer than that period.

“Calvary would only be willing to transfer approximately four hectares of the land the ­government is seeking for the ­development of a new northside hospital and future expansion space,” Mr Barr wrote in the letter dated May 8.

“It is therefore clear from Calvary’s response that there is presently no opportunity for the Territory to achieve a negotiated outcome with the Calvary on terms which meet the Territory’s objective.”

In an all-day court hearing on Wednesday, lawyers representing Calvary Hospital argued the government had not satisfied the just terms requirement of the acquisition because it had not been reasonably compensated for the loss of the Bruce site, including the business itself.

Months before negotiations broke down, Ms Stephen-Smith had written to Mr Bowles asking Calvary to consider how a “new northside hospital can be delivered on the current Bruce site”.

“The government fully intends to ensure that any arrangement will be agreed with Calvary and the details negotiated in good faith, recognising our joint interest in a new, state-of-the-art ­hospital on Canberra’s northside,” she wrote.

“I can assure you that Calvary remains a valued partner in delivering excellent hospital care for residents of the ACT and surrounding region.”

A decision in the ACT Supreme Court case is due by July 13.