OPEN LETTER TO PREMIER CAMPBELL NEWMAN Shop 3 Jetty Arcade Redcliffe Parade Redcliffe Qld 4020 24 January 2014 Dear Premier Subject: Another Queensland Health Disaster – GP Superclinic Stolen From Redcliffe Community On behalf of the people of Redcliffe, I demand that ownership of the Moreton Bay Integrated Care Centre (MBICC) be returned to The Redcliffe Hospital Foundation (Foundation) Queensland Health (QH) has over the past 4 years conducted a deceitful process to take the MBICC from its rightful owners – the community of Redcliffe. The Foundation was set-up to provide on-going support to the disadvantaged members of our community. Its projects employed many local people, including our young, in a productive effort to raise funds and benefit those most in need. The concept of the MBICC was to use the funds already acquired to construct a facility that provided much needed services to Redcliffe. The Foundation, through many years of dedicated work, raised $2million. The Foundation applied for Federal Government funding and was successful in gaining enough funding to complete the building. The only, I repeat the only, contribution from QH was to sell the land upon which the MBICC is located to the Foundation for $1.00. The business plan of the Foundation was to locate a research facility from the University of Queensland on the upper levels of the building. This would attract young GPs to the MBICC. A pharmacy was committed to occupy part of the ground floor. Other medical services would be attracted to a facility that contained GPs, a pharmacy and a University Research presence. Overflow patients from the Redcliffe Hospital’s overstretched Emergency Department could be treated in the clinic in a much more efficient system. The net income from these tenants was to be used by the Foundation to carry out philanthropic works within the Redcliffe community. It was the Foundation’s plan to generate in the vicinity of $500,000 net income per year. That profit was to be used to fund programs addressing the high local levels of diabetes, teenage pregnancies, and youth suicide. Upon completion of the MBICC some eighteen months ago, the University paid 20 years rent in advance to the Foundation and has been anxious to move in ever since. The pharmacy owner closed his pharmacy in Porter Street and has been anxious to move in ever since. What happened next was a totally despicable act, now clearly obvious as being the intention of QH from the outset. QH terminated its agreement with the Foundation, paid the Foundation $1.00 (Its own $1.00 given back) and took over the MBICC for itself. At the time of this takeover the Foundation had $1.5million in its bank account, a business plan that cannot be faulted, tenants ready to occupy plus a supportive community in need of the services that could be provided immediately. In what may be described as typical QH management style, the MBICC has remained unopened to this day. Let me restate, QH has dissolved the Foundation, taken the $1.5million from our bank account, taken our facility, denied us the income from our building and denied our community all the programs that would have been generated from the Foundation’s operation of the MBICC. I appeal to you as a man who supports the democratic right of the people to be heard, as a proponent of smaller Government, as a man who wants people to help themselves and not rely on Government hand-outs, as a man of integrity - to have QH give back our money, give back our facility, give back our opportunity to assist those in our community who need our help. Yours faithfully Len Thomas Independent Candidate for Redcliffe
Posted on: Fri, 24 Jan 2014 21:25:58 +0000