It was a great surprise that Leslie Williams in her Maiden Speech spoke of Wendy Machin, as the National Party told us if we voted for her they would build us a new Public Hospital. When we voted for her they said they had no money for a hospital and, even though this was bad enough, we were told our Public Hospital was being closed and we were to get a Private Base Hospital. So Wendy Machin went down in history as the first Member to ever lose a town as large as Port Macquarie their Public Hospital there were large demonstrations; everywhere she went.
The Hospital was a disaster. It was too small, cost double to run than any other hospital and saw less patients. We had a four-year wait for elective surgery, no matter how much extra money they got.
When Rob Oakshott was elected to the National Party he looked into it and set out to get back to the Public Hospital and that was when Andrew Stoner tried to stop him. He left the National Party and got the Labor Party to pay $80 million for the $34 million hospital because the contracts for the location had been signed to keep it for 20 years and then give it away, still leaving us without a hospital.
He not only got us a Public Hospital with hard work, he got us Dialysis Chairs and we got Radiation, none of which we could have when it was a Private Hospital and now, to top it off, he got $100 million to build the pods. This money was not given to the State Government it was given to him. Peter Besseling got the money for the plans and now all the present State Government are able to do is follow the plans they were given. This hospital will always stand for what a good Independent can do.
Peat Hollis
Port Macquarie
