CONSTITUENCY STATEMENTS
Dr HAINES (Indi) (16:06): I seek leave of the House to table a petition. The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Ms Aldred ): Has the petition been approved by the Petitions Committee? Dr HAINES: No, it has not.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Is leave granted for the document to be presented? Leave granted. Dr HAINES: I rise today to present a petition from the Corowa Wahgunyah Rutherglen Health Action Group calling for the state and federal governments to fully fund a single site Albury-Wodonga hospital that meets the needs of the region now and into the future.
This petition has been signed by 1,383 concerned residents of the Rutherglen, Wahgunyah and Corowa region who are demanding a better deal for their health. This region relies on Albury Wodonga Health and the smaller Corowa Hospital for lifesaving care. The Albury Wodonga Health Clinical Services Plan in 2021 identified the region's growing population and health needs and recommended the establishment of a single-site hospital.
The current proposal for upgrades to the Albury hospital is not fit for purpose and does not meet the border's needs now, let alone into the future. In May this year, the New South Wales Special commission of inquiry into healthcare funding report was released, issuing a scathing review of the proposed redevelopment of the Albury Base Hospital. Last year, the Prime Minister visited the border, and I handed him a letter signed by more than 200 local doctors calling for the current redevelopment of Albury Wodonga Health to be reconsidered in the form of a greenfield single-site hospital.
In March this year, I organised a meeting in parliament with the mayors from both Wodonga and Albury with the Minister for Health and Ageing. Together, we presented the unique case of Albury Wodonga Health being the only cross-border health service in Australia and explained why the Commonwealth investment is needed and why the states need to step up. Just last week, the state and territory premiers called for more investment from the federal government, specifically for health infrastructure funding.
During the recent election, I campaigned for a $2 billion building rural hospitals fund, a fund that would provide transparent, competitive and needs based funding opportunities for regional and rural health services to apply for such an investment in infrastructure improvement. Without appropriate investment in hospital infrastructure, the border region risks facing a worsening health crisis.
Thank you to the Corowa Wahgunyah Rutherglen Health Action Group and the 1,383 border residents who have signed this petition. I am standing up for local health professionals. I am standing up for the border community, and I am making your request here in the parliament for the New South Wales, Victorian and federal governments to come together and deliver a greenfield single-site hospital on the border, because the lives of the communities on the border depend on it.