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Bendigo
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hospital
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DELAY
By ANTHONY RADFORD
IT now seems certain no major construction works will begin on the Bendigo hospital redevelopment site until next year.
In December last year, the Bendigo Weekly revealed the ambulance station, which was planned to be demolished in mid 2010, would not be vacated until December this year.
This week, the state government’s Annual Statement of Government Intentions 2010 failed to mention the redevelopment.
The report mentioned the completion and opening this year of the hospital’s new Accident and Emergency Department, but failed to mention the Bendigo redevelopment, despite mentioning other hospital redevelopments such as Box Hill and the Dandenong Hospital Mental Health Service.
Liberal Party member for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell said the omission was evidence a full commitment had not yet been given to the redevelopment.
“It shows the government has no plans to begin the redevelopment of Bendigo hospital in this term,” she said.
“It shows the government has pushed out the hospital redevelopment until after the 2010 election.
“If the government was committed to expediting this project to provide improved health services to the city of Bendigo and surrounds, it would be pushing it along with Box Hill and Dandenong.
“It shows the government is trying to mislead the Bendigo community into believing it is committed to this hospital when all along it is pushing for Box Hill and Dandenong.”
Member for Bendigo East Jacinta Allan said Ms Lovell and the Opposition lacked credibility on the hospital issue and could not be trusted.
“The Liberal-National Opposition have made no funding commitment for a Bendigo hospital,” she said.
“To cover-up their shameful Bendigo let-down, they continue to deliberately distort the facts Labor has committed to a new hospital for Bendigo.
“Bendigo residents should be very concerned they will have no new hospital should the Liberals ever come to power.”
Ms Allan said Bendigo residents had a clear political choice.
“The Brumby Labor Government who has already committed $55 million to building a new hospital, has funded a soon-to-be-completed new emergency department and provided funding for more nurses and vital equipment like the MRI at Bendigo hospital,” she said.
“Or the city-centric Liberal Party whose leader Ted Baillieu this week revealed he has no plan for regional Victoria’s future, no commitment to a new hospital in Bendigo, and has a shameful track record of closing 12 country hospitals and sacking thousands of nurses in regional Victoria when he was president of the Liberal Party.
“Only Labor has the track record and black-and-white commitments to the health and welfare of Bendigo families.”
