South-West Coast electorate
Roma BRITNELL (South-West Coast) (14:48): (304) My question is to the Minister for Ambulance Services, and the action I seek is for the minister to explain the contradiction between her words and those of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) regarding the ongoing closure of the Portland District Health helipad. The minister, in her response to my inquiry, claimed that ‘improvements were required to ensure compliance with current Civil Aviation Safety Authority regulations’. However, the chief executive officer of CASA has written to me to say that ‘there were no changes to regulations that required the closure of the helipad at Portland Hospital’ and ‘the decision to suspend operations was unrelated to any changes in CASA regulations’. The response of CASA clearly indicates that the minister’s answer is not satisfactory, as CASA were not responsible. The minister must explain the apparent contradiction so that Portlanders can have their helipad reopened, saving the seconds that save lives.