Lyn Smith

I’ve been involved with fighting for the restoration of the Dementia extended care facility at Wyong Hospital because this Hospital has been in a mess for the last twelve months and it keeps getting worse.

We’ve been fighting hard for Wyong Hospital to maintain its own identity. Labor didn’t listen. Things were working well until Labor stuffed it up. They got rid of the management, raided the staff and merged Wyong and Gosford.

Everyone up here’s grateful that Peter and Chris Hartcher have stood up for the community and fought for Wyong to be managed on its own. We’re sick of our resources being drained by North Sydney. We were in the black, now everything’s going to North Sydney. Our staff morale is dreadful and they’re scared to talk – too afraid of losing their jobs.

We’ve had no choice but to setup a tent embassy to try and save the dementia facility. They put a sign up on the door that said it was closed and unit managers told us it wouldn’t reopen now matter how long we protested. The CEO of the Hospital is even refusing to meet with us as a group out at the tent. But we’re not giving up the fight!

They just won’t listen to the community – they’re keeping it closed.

Peter and Brenton are fighting for the community. This State Government has hit the most vulnerable people in our community - the aged, the sick and the young. They’re denying access to the most basic health care.  Labor forget that it could be their mum and dad tomorrow who could have dementia. Would they want to send them miles away to Gosford or Newcastle?

As Minister for the Central Coast Grant McBride is an absolute disgrace – he and his staff are refusing to return our calls and he won’t meet with us. Chris Hartcher, Brenton Pavier and Peter Debnam have put their hand up and said “if he won’t talk to you – we will”. It’s what we need here. 

Lyn Smith
Kanwal

Today we headed back up the F3 to meet Brenton Pavier our candidate for Wyong at Wyong Hospital on the Central Coast. Labor have recently closed the Wyong Hospital dementia extended care facility under the cover of darkness. The story here is a sad indictment on the Labor Government and how they treat the sick and infirm in NSW. Families of dementia sufferers only found out by accident that the facility was going to be closed. Labor’s plan was to inform them with a letter over Christmas.

The community up here are so irate over Labor’s handling of this debacle that they have set up a tent embassy outside the hospital. Lyn Smith presented me with a t-shirt with the catch-cry “Enough is Enough”. It’s the same message I’m hearing about this Labor Government from people all over NSW.

We left Wyong Hospital and headed down the Pacific Highway down to Bluebell where we met Jenny at the Chicken Shop. The little shopping community here is doing it tough under a barrage of vandalism and malicious damage. Bricks being hurled through windows is a common occurrence because Labor has failed to adequately resource our Police and protect the community.

At Bluebell we walked across the road to Bluebell Park where we started our walk around Tuggerah Lake with Shadow Environment Minister Michael Richardson, and members of the Tumbi Creek Action Group, Rocky Point Landcare Croup, Wycare and Dunecare as well as staff from Wyong Council. Through our six kilometre walk we stopped off at Tumbi Creek and looked at the problems of sedimentation and pollution that flow into Tuggerah Lake. After twelve years, Labor continues to turn a blind-eye.

Tuggerah Lake is a beautiful spot, but there’s no doubt action is desperately needed on the creeks, the sedimentation and the drainage channels. The last time anything was done here was 1988 when Bob Graham led the fight and the Greiner Liberal Government worked with the community to start cleaning up this mess.

After twelve years of Labor, Tuggerah Lakes estuary is under threat because the State Government has failed to fund Wyong Council’s Tuggerah Lakes Estuary Management Plan. Phil Walker, our candidate for The Entrance, and Brenton Pavier have been fighting hard for a commitment on Tuggerah Lake for the people of the Central Coast.

Today we made the commitment that Labor have refused to make for the last twelve years. Our plan will dedicate $20 million to restore Tuggerah Lakes. This package will restore the ecology, remove seagrass wrack build-up and improve water quality to reduce sediments and nutrients. We’re also going to improve the amenity of the area for local families - upgrading beaches, playgrounds, BBQs and boat ramps. Our plan will make Tuggerah Lake a vital part of this community.

Once again we were joined by Morris Iemma’s squad of Union placard holders. While Morris Iemma and the Labor Party are fighting tooth and nail to protect their spin-doctors in the Sydney bureaucracy, I’m fighting to deliver more services to the frontline and local communities - so we can deliver projects like the restoration of Tuggerah Lake here on the Central Coast.

It was then on to Mingara where we held a water forum with Member for Gosford Chris Hartcher, our Central Coast candidates and representatives from Wyong and Gosford Councils and local community groups. The water crisis here is dire. The headline on today’s Central Coast Express Advocate said it all “130 Litres”. That’s all the people of the Central Coast are going to be able to use under level 5 water restrictions – which is half a load of washing and a quick shower everyday.

With the situation so dire the people on the Central Coast just can’t wait for rain. It’s clear something must be done and done soon. Labor have had twelve years and have failed to provide the solutions the people on the Central Coast so desperately need. If you’re not willing to campaign on your record, you don’t deserve to be re-elected. More than ever it is clear that the only way we can change things in NSW is to change the Government. 

Peter Debnam