Former Minister of Health Gilbert McLean broke his silence last week concerning criticisms made by the current government recently about the operations of the Health Services Authority under his ministership.
In particular, Mr. McLean expressed outrage over statements made by current Cabinet members stating the government had discovered to what it says ‘its horror’ that the HSA had operated without a budget for the last two years.
Leader of Government Business Kurt Tibbetts made the assertion most recently during last week’s Budget Address in Legislative Assembly.
Mr. McLean said he didn’t know what the government was taking about.
‘It is impossible for a government department or authority to operate without a budget,’ he said.
Mr. McLean pointed out that in February the government passed a supplementary appropriations bill approving nearly $10 million more of funding to the HSA in addition to the $4.5 million originally budgeted.
‘The (current) government should know. They were there (in Legislative Assembly) when we (passed the supplemental appropriation),’ he said. ‘How could we supplement something if it didn’t exist in the first place?’
He said he didn’t understand how the current government could say there was no budget.
‘Under the Public Management Finance Law, each department and authority has to submit a budget to the ministry to be included in the national budget.’
Deputy Financial Secretary and HSA board member Peter Gough said Friday that the statement that the HSA had no budget had been ‘taken out of context.’
‘(The HSA) had a budget in that they knew what they were getting from government, but that budget was not trickled down to each unit of the HSA.’
Mr. Gough said each of the various units of the HSA therefore did not know how much funding had been allocated to it.
Mr. McLean did not agree with that statement either.
‘Under the Public Finance Laws governing authorities, you don’t have to have the budget broken down for every unit under the authority, but the (HSA) board insisted that it be broken down.’
Mr. McLean pointed out that going back to 2002, current Financial Secretary Kenneth Jefferson was on the HSA board of directors and that he gave way to Mr. Gough, who also served as the director of Budget and Management.
‘They would be the men appointed to make sure the budget was in order,’ he said.
Mr. McLean said the current government was not helping anything by continually making the claims about there being not HSA budget for two years.
‘I understand politics is politics, and the fact that (the current government) wants to discredit the past government and myself as the minister responsible,’ he said. ‘But this is damaging morale at the hospital and it’s damaging the health services in this country.
‘The government is continually repeating this and creating the situation where even a sensible person is wondering if it’s true.
‘I feel it’s my duty to see the truth come out.’
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