The Nationals WA will ensure access to specialist medical care is more equitable for regional West Australians by boosting the Patient Assisted Travel Scheme (PATS) to bring it in line with patient, community and health sector expectations. The $58 million commitment announced by Leader Mia Davies with candidate for Kalgoorlie Rowena Olsen in the Goldfields…
Five towns in the Agricultural Region will not have a refund point by 1 October 2020 when the Container Deposit Scheme (Containers for Change) commences. Nationals Member for the Agricultural Region has called on the Minister for Environment to intervene to ensure that regional people are not short-changed in having their 10-cent container deposit returned…
The Nationals Member for the Agricultural Region has called on the State Government to urgently review the legislative protections available to frontline police and ambulance officers in light of confirmation that they will not be protected by recent reforms. “The Labor Government has rushed legislation through the Parliament that provides a rebuttable presumption that certain…
The Nationals WA recently used Parliament to highlight the progress made to improve regional communication networks and the work that government and industry faces to ensure reliable connectivity into the future. The Member for the Agricultural Region, Martin Aldridge MLC moved the debate focusing on the impacts of natural disaster such as fires as well…
The Nationals WA have called on the State Government to deliver a support and recovery package for regional agricultural shows impacted by COVID-19. Member for the Agricultural Region Martin Aldridge said regional communities were concerned about the future of their local shows following an announcement by the Premier that Phase 5 restrictions would not be…
Local governments in regional WA are spending more than 10 per cent of their budgets to lure and retain general practitioners while others have gone more than a year with no GP at all. Information obtained through a survey of councils conducted by The Nationals WA revealed at least two regional local governments were forking…
The Nationals WA have expressed concerns over the Labor Government’s GP Urgent Care Clinic Network with recent data collected showing the cost of the 2019 initiative failing to reflect any significant results. In September last year, the State Government announced the 18-month pilot program as a commitment to ease pressure on busy hospital emergency departments…
In a follow-up to last year’s concerning discovery of reduced doctor availability at regional hospitals, regional patients are still suffering a lack of access to emergency care and treatment. The Nationals WA Health spokesperson Martin Aldridge recently questioned the Labor Government to determine if there had been any improvement to the shocking finding in 2019…
The Nationals WA are calling on the State Government to convene a special inquiry examining the State’s preparedness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Leader Mia Davies said special inquiries were common after major emergencies or events impacting Western Australia and called for one to review the COVID-19 response once the State of Emergency declaration…
Amendments steered through the Legislative Council by The Nationals WA will ensure greater transparency and accountability in a new WA fund to foster health research and innovation. The Nationals WA health spokesperson Martin Aldridge pushed for the changes amid concerns about the controls on the administration of the Future Health Research and Innovation (FHRI) Account.…