Pictured from left: Indigo Deputy Mayor Jane Dowsley, Wodonga Mayor Michael Gobel, Towong Shire Council Cr Denise Anderson, Wodonga Deputy Mayor Michelle Cowan, AlburyCity Mayor Kevin Mack and Deputy Mayor Jessica Kellahan
The AlburyCity and Wodonga mayors are encouraged the NSW Health Minister has left the door open for a meeting with the Federal Government to review funding options for a new greenfield hospital on the Border.
The quest for a new single-site hospital in Albury-Wodonga to address the wider region’s growing healthcare needs intensified this week after the mayors of AlburyCity and Wodonga together attended separate meetings with the Federal and New South Wales health ministers.
Advocacy for a new greenfield hospital gained further support following a meeting between Mayors Kevin Mack and Michael Gobel, representing an alliance of 13 regional councils, and the Federal Health Minister, Mark Butler MP in Canberra on Wednesday.
“Our feeling after the meeting, facilitated by the Member for Indi Helen Haines, was that the Federal Government is very much more aware of our healthcare issues in Albury-Wodonga,” explained AlburyCity Mayor Kevin Mack.
“The Federal Minister for Health expressed a view that $558 million does not build you much when it comes to hospitals, and he’s keen to see whether opportunities exist for the Federal Government to assist our advocacy, including helping to persuade NSW and Victoria to consider pausing the redevelopment of the existing Albury Base Hospital site.”
Wodonga Council’s Mayor Michael Gobel mirrored this sentiment and noted the Minister’s understanding of what makes this project so unique.
“The Minister was engaged and very well briefed,” he said.
“He now has a much better appreciation of the scale, importance, timeframe and the unique nature of the healthcare situation that exists across our wider region.”
The mayors’ meeting with Minister Butler was followed by a meeting on Thursday in Sydney with the NSW Health Minister, Ryan Park MP, facilitated by the Member for Albury, Justin Clancy MP.
“We understand the NSW Government is not going to pause the start of construction on the brownfield site, but the NSW Health Minister is open to meeting with his federal counterpart and having a discussion about the potential for federal funding support,” explained AlburyCity Mayor Kevin Mack.
“The meeting with Minister Park highlighted the need for communication between all three levels of government and the opportunity to seek co-funding from the Federal Government for a new hospital.”
To date $558 million has been committed by the NSW and Victorian Governments, including $20 million from the Federal Government, for the redevelopment of the existing brownfield hospital site in Albury.
Mayor Gobel, while disappointed that the existing project will not be paused, saw the meeting as a step forward.
“We’d obviously like the project to be put on hold, but it was encouraging to have a constructive conversation that sought common ground and a way to move past this impasse,” he said.
“We’ve brought national attention to this issue and look forward to continuing to work with Minister Butler and Minister Park on achieving health outcomes that genuinely reflect the needs of our community while future-proofing our region for years to come.
“Importantly, we will not give up on our advocacy for a new hospital on a new site.”
Mayors Mack and Gobel requested the Federal Government’s help to unlock the impasse with the New South Wales and Victorian Governments and, potentially through a tripartite agreement, pause the current $558 million Albury Wodonga Regional Hospital project.
They are instead calling for the necessary funding to support the development of a new hospital, in line with the objectives outlined in the Albury Wodonga Health 2021 Clinical Services Plan, and an interim strategy to immediately provide the additional beds, modular wards and operating theatres needed to help accommodate the existing critical demand for healthcare services.
The mayors referenced the Federal Government’s intervention in the Albury-Wodonga freeway bypass project as an example of all three tiers of government working cooperatively to deliver an optimal outcome that served both local community and national interests.
While in Sydney, the mayors also met with NSW Shadow Minister for Health Kellie Sloane and Greens NSW Spokesperson for Health Dr Amanda Cohn on a bipartisan approach to ensure all sides of politics have access to the same information.
The battle for a new hospital on a new site will continue this Saturday, 29 March at a community rally in Albury’s QEII Square from 10am-11am.
The community is encouraged to wear a white t-shirt and join local doctors, nurses, ambulance personnel, allied health professionals, mayors and community advocates, in a show of support for a new greenfield, single-site hospital in Albury-Wodonga.