Health Minister Ryan Park has been caught misleading NSW Parliament, with internal NSW Health briefings from 2024 revealing $80 million was approved in the budget for the Forster-Tuncurry public hospital.
Under questioning at Budget Estimates last month, Mr Park stated "I don't want people to think we are skirting around it … it wasn't in the previous budget, or any budget, as a result of the last Coalition Government."
When questioned about his misleading statements, Mr Park told media, "The Coalition is taking residents for mugs if they think $80 million will buy an entire hospital', proving that there was in fact money in the budget.
Shadow Minister for Health and Regional Health Sarah Mitchell said the Minister has not only misled parliament, he's also not across his brief.
"The $80 million wasn't to buy a new hospital, it was to acquire the existing Forster Private Hospital and redevelop it into a public health facility," Mrs Mitchell said.
"Chris Minns and Ryan Park made health central to their election campaign in 2023 but our health system has never been worse."
Nationals Member for Myall Lakes, Tanya Thompson, said her community is sick of being treated like fools by the Minns Labor Government.
"The Minns Government is putting politics over patients, and regional communities, like Forster-Tuncurry, are being left behind," Mrs Thompson said.
"The Health Minister has lied under oath, misled parliament and cut beds and health services from the Myall Lakes. It's no wonder he hasn't been back up here since the election."
In 2024 the Minns government announced Forster would get an urgent-care clinic, but the project is still stuck at the planning stage.
