Failed Labor vote labelled a stunt

THE State Government has denounced a Labor attempt to move another no-confidence motion in Health Minister Micheal Ferguson as “a stunt”.

The attempt was voted down in State Parliament yesterday.

Opposition leader Rebecca White moved the 15-point motion after Question Time.

Premier Will Hodgman said it was a waste of parliamentary time.

“Their failed attempt to bring on a no-confidence motion today is just another way to disrupt parliament and draw attention away from the fact that they refuse to offer anything constructive, like an alternative budget,” he said.

“This is off the back of seven previous failed no-confidence or censure motion attempts, which ultimately consumed more than 20 hours of the parliament’s time.”

Speaker Sue Hickey backed the motion to hold a debate, but Labor fell short of the twothirds majority required for it to proceed.

Much of yesterday’s Question Time was taken up with questions about Mr Ferguson’s failure to respond to concerns raised with him by the nurses’ union on May 16.

The letter asked for an urgent response to discuss understaffed and overworked psychiatric emergency nurses working in “dangerous conditions with often scared and volatile patients”.

On June 6, a week after its May 27 deadline, the union bypassed Mr Ferguson, appealing directly to the Premier and other MPs.

Mr Ferguson replied to their letter yesterday morning, an hour before parliament sat.

The requested meeting has not been held.

Ms White said Mr Ferguson should be replaced.

“The Government have again used their numbers today to block debate around a serious no confidence motion in the Minister for Health Michael Ferguson,” she said.

“Overall, we’ve seen a decline in health services in this state over the last five years — for the entire time the minister has been the Health Minister.

“Michael Ferguson now has been Health Minister for half a decade and things are unfortunately getting worse.”