Mr VATSKALIS - 2012-11-28
As you are aware, renal dialysis is very power intensive. How much more money have you allocated in your mini-budget to fund the electricity price hike or are you going to request the renal dialysis clinic to treat fewer people in order to cope with your price hike?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Casuarina. Once again, these increases in tariffs will be absorbed within the budgets of every government service or agency that is affected. We are all affected by these tariff increases. Obviously, the health and wellbeing of people who are sick and require treatment is of absolute priority for this government, for any government.
To assert that we do not care because we are increasing the cost of electricity, sewerage and power is false. May I remind the former government that they presided over the highest rentals in the country? Over the last 11 years the former government subjected the people of the Northern Territory to the highest rentals in the country. In the September 2012 quarter, renting a house in Darwin ...
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Relevance. The question was about whether they are increasing funding in terms of renal services to cover the cost of the price hikes. It has nothing at all to do with rentals.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, Opposition Leader.
Mrs LAMBLEY: Madam Speaker, it is all about the cost of living. It is all about the impost of things like rentals, and electricity prices and sewerage prices.
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! It was a very specific question with no preamble. It was about renal services and whether or not additional funding would be allocated to cater for the increase in price costs in renal services.
Madam SPEAKER: Treasurer, please come to the point.
Mrs LAMBLEY: Madam Speaker, people who receive renal dialysis treatment also pay rent and have been subjected to extraordinarily high rents over the last 11 years thanks to the former government. When you look at how these people cope in the community, their access to services, their lifestyle, their quality of living, let us look at the full picture. It is not just about an increase in power that will affect the quality of life of renal dialysis patients. It is about the rents they pay and, once again, you can thank the former government for that.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Casuarina. Once again, these increases in tariffs will be absorbed within the budgets of every government service or agency that is affected. We are all affected by these tariff increases. Obviously, the health and wellbeing of people who are sick and require treatment is of absolute priority for this government, for any government.
To assert that we do not care because we are increasing the cost of electricity, sewerage and power is false. May I remind the former government that they presided over the highest rentals in the country? Over the last 11 years the former government subjected the people of the Northern Territory to the highest rentals in the country. In the September 2012 quarter, renting a house in Darwin ...
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Relevance. The question was about whether they are increasing funding in terms of renal services to cover the cost of the price hikes. It has nothing at all to do with rentals.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, Opposition Leader.
Mrs LAMBLEY: Madam Speaker, it is all about the cost of living. It is all about the impost of things like rentals, and electricity prices and sewerage prices.
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! It was a very specific question with no preamble. It was about renal services and whether or not additional funding would be allocated to cater for the increase in price costs in renal services.
Madam SPEAKER: Treasurer, please come to the point.
Mrs LAMBLEY: Madam Speaker, people who receive renal dialysis treatment also pay rent and have been subjected to extraordinarily high rents over the last 11 years thanks to the former government. When you look at how these people cope in the community, their access to services, their lifestyle, their quality of living, let us look at the full picture. It is not just about an increase in power that will affect the quality of life of renal dialysis patients. It is about the rents they pay and, once again, you can thank the former government for that.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016