A PETITION to stop the ACT Government’s compulsory acquisition of Calvary Public Hospital run by the Little Company of Mary in Canberra has received more than 25,000 signatures as of May 22.
Canberra-Goulburn priest Fr Tony Percy is leading the archdiocesan taskforce behind the petition.
He said the government had created a 120-year lease with Calvary Public Hospital in 1979.
Up until November, the government and Calvary had been in negotiations about building another hospital on the current site. Then the dialogue stopped.
Six months later on May 11, ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith introduced laws to the ACT Legislative Assembly that would acquire the hospital and bring it into Canberra Health Services by as early as July 3.
“They’re 44 years into (the lease) and the government’s saying, we’re going to compulsorily acquire the land, the buildings and rip up the service contract,” Fr Percy said.
He said the archdiocese accepted the fact that governments could mount compulsory acquisitions – “we don’t like it, but we accept it”.
The real issue, he said, was the law that governed how these acquisitions happened, the ACT Land Acquisition Act 1994, was going to be suspended in order to achieve the acquisition.
“This sets a terrible precedent, not only for other groups in the ACT, but right around the country if they get away with it,” he said.
The petition on savecalvary.com.au claims:
- The legislation was drafted and tabled without any consultation with Calvary Hospital, management, staff or patients.
- The proposed timeframe demonstrates a complete unwillingness on the part of the ACT Government to dialogue with its citizens,
- The ACT government does not have the competency to run a second hospital, as it is already struggling to provide adequate services at the Canberra Hospital.
- The government will target other faith, welfare and community groups without consultation. The signatories to this petition have a variety of religious beliefs and value the work of Calvary Hospital under its current management.
Canberra-Goulburn Archbishop Christopher Prowse said in a statement that “no convincing reasons had been offered for this draconian action” by the ACT Government.
“No systemic issues of concern regarding Calvary’s health outcomes has been identified; to the contrary, the Health Minister made a point of emphasising Calvary’s excellent care for patients,” he said.
“I am deeply troubled about this situation and its implications.
“There is a rising fear, also, that this extraordinary and completely unnecessary government intervention could set the scene for future ‘acquisitions’ of any faith-based health facility or, indeed, any faith-based enterprise, including education or social welfare.”