Mr CHRIS HARTCHER (Terrigal) [5.53 p.m.]: I bring to the attention of the House the troubling circumstances surrounding the sad passing of one of my constituents, Mrs Joyce Featon. Mrs Featon passed away in 2004 at Royal North Shore Hospital having been transferred there after receiving what can only be described as unhappy treatment at Gosford Hospital.

Mr CHRIS HARTCHER (Terrigal) [5.15 p.m.]: I have raised the issue of public radiotherapy services on the Central Coast for years, and on 17 November 2007 I presented a petition signed by 19,000 local residents to the Parliament calling for public radiotherapy services on the Central Coast.

Mr CHRIS HARTCHER: I have had a long and rewarding association with the Gosford East Public School since I was elected to Parliament in 1988 and it gives me great pleasure to outline the latest developments at the school. The school is located on the shores of Brisbane Water and has an enrolment of around 340 students in kindergarten to year 6. Local Lions and Lioness Club members have recently completed a major community service project—a Rehabilitation Activity Centre for Children with Disabilities at the school. The project was initiated by the Lioness Club of East Gosford and, with the assistance of the East Gosford Lions Club, it became a Lions Zone project once its magnitude was determined. After discussions with staff members of the school, a wish list budget was established. A compromise design was agreed on and the budget was set at $183,000.

 Mr CHRIS HARTCHER (Terrigal) [12.37 p.m.]: Late last year I brought to the attention of the House the failure of this Labor Government to maintain and provide essential health services to residents of the Central Coast. At the announcement of last year's budget, it was revealed there was no allocation of funding secured by the Minister for Health for a public radiotherapy oncology centre on the Central Coast, thereby consigning Central Coast cancer sufferers to paying thousands of dollars for private treatment, travelling by private car or public transport to Sydney or Newcastle for public treatment or, at worst, forgoing treatment altogether. It was a year and a half ago when the Parliament was presented with a petition containing 19,000 signatures pleading for a public service on the Central Coast and what was the result—nothing?

Mr CHRIS HARTCHER (Terrigal) [5.29 p.m.]: Erina Fair Medical Care is a medical centre located at Erina Fair. It is owned and operated by Mr Peter Carr, who established the practice in November 2003 with an understanding of the peril of many residents of the Central Coast who are unable to see a doctor—most practices on the Central Coast have had their books closed to new patients for many years. 

 Matter of Public Importance

 Mr CHRIS HARTCHER (Terrigal) [7.57 p.m.]: Recall procedures allow citizens to remove and replace a public official, generally through another election before the expiration of their term of office. A recall procedure generally is brought about by a petition that may cite specific reasons for the dismissal of the office holder and bears the signature of a certain percentage of citizens or voters.