The Northern Beaches Hospital (Voluntary Contract Termination) Bill 2025

Regular readers of my communications know I have been eagerly awaiting the release of the NSW Auditor General’s report into Northern Beaches Hospital. Since becoming your State MP in March 2023, my office has received many formal and informal complaints from staff and the community about our local hospital.  

My team and I were unable to get satisfactory answers from NSW Health and Healthscope, so we formally requested the NSW Auditor General undertake a performance audit of the state’s only public private partnership for acute medical services. You can read the report on my website michaelreganmp.com

The release of the sobering report coincided with the financial demise of the hospital’s operating company, which has recently called in the receivers. The situation is evolving rapidly, but I am working with the government to untangle this mess and return the hospital to public ownership.

‘The Future of Northern Beaches Hospital’ Community Forum

On 14th May, nearly 500 concerned citizens gathered to finally hear the truth about our local public hospital. With the Member for Pittwater, I was pleased to co-host the NSW Treasurer and Health Minister at a community forum at Dee Why RSL.

The Health Minister said clearly that the New South Wales Government is doing everything it can to return public services at Northern Beaches Hospital back to public hands.  He said: “The NSW Treasurer and I have made a decision to try and right a wrong. It’s not going to be easy but we can get there. This is a model of health care that no longer works. From my perspective it’s a model that doesn’t deliver benefits to the community in
a way a public hospital does.”

I was also pleased to hear the Health Minister say, “We are not in the game of reducing services at the Northern Beaches Hospital and we will make sure it is a properly funded hospital.”

I was pleased the shadow Minister for Health attended the forum and apologised to the community for the previous Liberal Government’s decision to close the Manly and Mona Vale public hospitals and place essential public health services in the hands of a listed private company where, not surprisingly, profit has been the dominant consideration.  

NSW Parliamentary Inquiry

The work of exposing what has happened at the hospital and charting a course forward continues through the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry. Submissions closed on 20 May. I am a member of the Public Accounts Committee conducting the inquiry and look forward to examining the evidence and contributing to the final report, which will include recommendations to the NSW Government. 

The Northern Beaches Hospital (Voluntary Contract Termination) Bill 2025

In order to remove a significant barrier to the return of our Northern Beaches Hospital to public ownership, I was pleased to introduce The Northern Beaches Hospital (Voluntary Contract Termination) Bill 2025 to parliament on 8 May.

My bill removes this barrier, by specifying that no compensation will be payable on the voluntary termination of the contract by the state. In doing so, it moves us a step towards what the people of the Northern Beaches deserve, what the staff at the Northern Beaches Hospital deserve:  a not-for-profit local public hospital.

We are hopeful for a resolution to the hospital’s ownership and future operating model within the next few months.  Keep an eye on my social media and e-newsletter for updates.