❓ Ms Mettam questions the effectiveness of the winter surge plan for WA hospitals, suggesting it may be the 'new normal'. Ms Hammat refutes this, highlighting investments in bed capacity, infrastructure, and the purchase of a new public hospital.

Health—2026 winter strategy63.Ms Libby Mettamto theMinister for Health:I have a supplementary question. Given that the minister has already said that the winter surge plan probably will not work, is this is the new normal for WA hospitals?

Ms Meredith Hammat replied:Member, I have not said that, just to be clear. I have been very clear about what we—Several members interjected.The Speaker:Members!Ms Meredith Hammat:I have been very clear that this is about preparedness for winter.Ms Libby Mettaminterjected.The Speaker:Member for Vasse, you have asked the question; let the minister respond.Ms Meredith Hammat:It is about preparedness. It is about additional investments.Ms Libby Mettaminterjected.The Speaker:Member for Vasse, I am calling you for the first time. Please stop interjecting.Ms Meredith Hammat:There are significant investments that we have announced today—an uplift in bed capacity, an uplift in Time to Think beds and an uplift for flu vaccinations. The preparation is already underway in the department, working with HSPs, to make sure that we have plans in place to deal with the busy winter season. As a government, we have announced that we are purchasing St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital. I am very excited to announce today that that will become a public hospital on 31 August. We have invested—Ms Libby Mettaminterjected.The Speaker:Member for Vasse, please stop interjecting.Several members interjected.The Speaker:Member for Belmont, you too! Sorry, member for Vasse.Ms Meredith Hammat:We are purchasing an additional hospital and investing $4.9 million into infrastructure. We are a government that takes the health of Western Australians seriously. It is one of our key priorities. We are always looking at what we need to do to ensure that Western Australians get access to the health care they need. I have said many times in this place that we will not stop doing that because we are a government and a party—Mr Basil Zempilasinterjected.The Speaker:Leader of the Opposition, please stop interjecting.Ms Meredith Hammat:We understand how important it is to deliver health care to Western Australians, unlike those opposite.Mr Liam Staltariinterjected.The Speaker:Member for Carine, please do not interject.Ms Meredith Hammat:We will keep looking at what more we need to do. This is an important announcement that contributes additional resources into our planning for winter. It reflects the additional planning that is already happening. It is part of an ongoing number of investments that we have announced into additional hospital capacity, like buying the Mount Lawley hospital, like the work that we are doing to develop infrastructure at the Peel hospital, like the work we are doing—Mr Basil Zempilasinterjected.The Speaker:Leader of the Opposition, I am going to call you for the first time. I asked you to stop interjecting.Ms Meredith Hammat:—to build a new emergency department at Royal Perth Hospital. On the weekend, we were in Peel opening a mental health and eating disorder clinic. I have talked in this house today about the work we are doing to deliver a community health hub at Byford and the work that we are doing right across the board to deliver not only additional hospital capacity, but also preventive health and appropriate health care for older Western Australians—Several members interjected.Ms Meredith Hammat:It is clear they do not—Several members interjected.The Speaker:Members, the more you interject, the longer it is going to take the minister to conclude her comments. Carry on, minister.Ms Meredith Hammat:We are doing work right across the board. We are very proud of the work we are doing. We will not stop doing what we need to do to deliver health care to Western Australians. We understand the importance of this. We understand the policy of it, and we will not be swayed from that by the pantomime from those opposite. Health—2026 winter strategy