Ms JENNY AITCHISON (Maitland) (16:16): I speak today about the lack of staffing throughout the NSW Ambulance service but particularly at the station at Rutherford, in my electorate. For some time, paramedics across this State have said that they are under enormous pressure and that the health system has been under‑resourced and completely overstretched. I am so concerned about the state of their health. We have seen paramedics at their absolute end. This has been drawn to my attention by numerous paramedics but also by members of the public who have been waiting at times for hours for ambulances to come because there are not enough staff members there. This is part of the health crisis in Maitland. I call it a crisis reluctantly because it is a serious word, but we have a massive problem there. We do not have enough staffed beds in our emergency department, so our ambulances are ramping, which is creating all sorts of problems for our community.
Mr Alister Henskens: You got a new hospital.
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: I acknowledge the interjection of the member for Ku-ring-gai. I urge him to clearly understand that providing a health service is not about a building. We have a beautiful public building, which I am very grateful for. Maitland is a city in which only 17 per cent of people have private health insurance, so it should never have been on the table that it was going to be a—
Mr Alister Henskens: You did not get a new hospital under Labor for 16 years.
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: Madam Deputy Speaker, I am so disgusted at the interjections from those opposite. This is the highest-taxing government in New South Wales. We went through this in question time. There was a 9 per cent increase in taxes in the last year—
Mr Kevin Conolly: Point of order—
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: There is no point of order.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Riverstone is entitled to take a point of order. The Clerk will stop the clock.
Mr Kevin Conolly: There have been many rulings from previous Speakers that private members' statements should concern themselves primarily with a member's electorate and not public policy.
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: To the point of order: Madam Deputy Speaker, can I speak to my private member's statement, which is about my electorate? That is what I have spoken about. Only 17 per cent of people have private health insurance. They are dealing with massive cost-of-living issues. We have the highest-taxing government in New South Wales. It impacts directly on my community. We have had a nearly 10 per cent increase in those taxes in one year, while the economy went up by 1 per cent. Public sector employees have had their wages capped, and we had ambulance people—
Mr Kevin Conolly: Point of order—
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: I am talking about my electorate. You have no right to do this.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The Clerk will stop the clock.
Mr Kevin Conolly: I understood that the member for Maitland wanted to speak to the point of order, but that is not what she did.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Maitland then said that she just wanted to finish her private member's statement. I understand that that is what she is doing; she is not speaking to the point of order.
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: I am absolutely gobsmacked by this. We have a health crisis in Maitland. We do not have enough staff on our wards and in our emergency departments. Our paramedics are waiting when they could be transporting people to the hospital. Our paramedics are on the edge. I will read what one has told me:
… there are not enough paramedics, it's that simple. Covid isn't helping but when there wasn't enough to start with Covid makes it worse.
Because of the lack of resources when you do come in for a shift the workload is ridiculous, it's dangerous, its burning paramedics out at a fast rate which decreases our numbers even further, which in turn puts more pressure on the ones we do have.
So we are struggling to fill shifts and people are refusing to do overtime because of the workload and fatigue and stresses involved with it.
The record for me is 5 ambulances down on one shift. The hunter is supposed to have 17 ambulances on a night shift, so that night we only had 12. A mate told me the other night we were down 7 ambulances for the hunter which means they started with 10 not 17.
What is driving some of this run on the emergency departments is that we do not have enough GPs in our electorate because this lot over there, Madam Speaker, and federally decided to take away bulk-billing for our area by declaring it metro. That is what they did—
Mr Alister Henskens: Point of order—
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: It is related to my electorate. You can gag me all you like, but it is disgraceful.
Mr Alister Henskens: The member for Maitland is pointing across the Chamber, saying "this lot". Under the standing orders, she ought to be directing her comments through the Chair, not prevaricating and pointing across the Chamber.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: I uphold the point of order.
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: If the member for Ku-ring-gai had been listening, he would have heard me say "this lot, Madam Speaker". I was directing my comments through you. The problem with those opposite is that they do not care. They do not want to hear about the lack of bulk-billing in my electorate, which is driving up emergency department presentations, because they do not care—
Mr Alister Henskens: Point of order—
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: There is no point of order. This is just wasting time. You are a disgrace.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Has the member for Maitland concluded her private member's statement?
Ms JENNY AITCHISON: No, I have not.
Mr Alister Henskens: Private members' statements are supposed to be about members' electorates. Bulk‑billing is a Federal Government responsibility. It has nothing to do with this Parliament or the powers of the New South Wales Parliament.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: There is no point of order. The member for Maitland did refer to her electorate. It does not specify in the standing orders what she has must actually say about her electorate.
Ms Lynda Voltz: To the point of order: I was hoping to speak to the point of order that was raised by the member for Ku-ring-gai.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Auburn may do so, but the time of the member for Maitland has expired.
Ms Lynda Voltz: On behalf of this side of the Chamber, I make the point that, time and again, the Opposition has shown Government members the courtesy, during private members' statements, of allowing them to talk about their electorates without interruption. Some members opposite have adopted the practice of taking frivolous points of order during private members' statements. Courtesy has been shown in the past. If Government members want to play games in this Chamber during private members' statements—which are a unique opportunity for members to put forward points on behalf of their electorates—we will stop showing them the courtesy that we have always extended.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: I have heard the member's point of order.
Mr Kevin Conolly: To the point of order: I take offence at being told that I am playing a game or being frivolous. All I said earlier was that many Speakers—
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: I have heard enough. Thank you.
