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Communities in the Central Coast are benefitting from more timely access to urgent care, with more than 25,000 visits made to the Long Jetty Urgent Care Service since it opened in December 2023.

Since opening, the service has supported the community with timely care for a wide range of conditions that can be safely and appropriately treated outside of busy public hospital emergency departments (EDs). These include musculoskeletal conditions (sprains, pains, minor fractures, and plaster care), respiratory conditions, infections, minor injuries, rashes, bites and stings.

This Urgent Care Service is just one example of the services the Minns Government is delivering and expanding, making it easier for patients and families to access the care they need.

Open seven days a week from 8am to 8pm, including public holidays, the Long Jetty Urgent Care Service is staffed by general practitioners, nurses and allied health clinicians. The service also offers access to onsite pathology and works with local radiology providers during business hours when imaging is required.

The multidisciplinary team is able to provide patients with high quality and safe healthcare, including referring them to Central Coast Local Health District’s Hospital in the Home service or other community services if additional care and support are needed.

Patients who have a non life-threatening condition should call Healthdirect on 1800 022 222 for free advice, anytime of the day or night. A registered nurse will assess the patient’s condition and connect them to the right care, which can include referral to an Urgent Care Service.

Patients needing language support can call TIS National on 131 450 and ask for Healthdirect.

The Minns Labor Government is investing in a suite of ED alternative pathways in an effort to ease pressure on busy hospital EDs and ensure the people of NSW receive the most appropriate care.

This includes:

• ​$171.4 million to introduce three additional virtual care services helping 180,000 avoid a trip to the ED.
• $100 million to continue urgent care services for a further two years to 30 June 2027 to provide a pathway to care outside of our hospitals for an estimated 114,000 patients
• $70 million to expand emergency department short stay units to improve patient flow to reduce ED wait times by nearly 80,000 hours
• $15.1 million for an Ambulance Matrix that provides real time hospital data to enable paramedics to transport patients to emergency departments with greater capacity and reducing wait times​
• $31.4 million to increase Hospital in the Home across the state allowing over 3,500 additional patients each year to be cared for in their home rather than a hospital bed
• $53.9 million to improve patient flow and support discharge planning by identified patients early on that are suitable to be discharged home with the appropriate supports in place.

Minister for Health Ryan Park

“Urgent Care Services like the one at Long Jetty are a key strategy in reducing pressure on our EDs and ensuring patients receive timely care.

“Every day we see how valuable this service is for the Central Coast community. Patients appreciate being able to receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.

“This is why the Minns Government is continuing to invest in and expand access to ED alternatives.”

Minister for the Central Coast David Harris:

“The numbers speak for themselves, 25,000 visits to the Long Jetty Urgent Care Service since it opened less than two and a half years ago represents a lot of people receiving timely care and treatment and a large relief for our region’s busy EDs.

“It is wonderful that people in the growing north of the Coast have this care option and that they are making such good use of it.”

Member for The Entrance David Mehan:

“I want to thank the wonderful staff at the Long Jetty Urgent Care Service. Thanks to their dedication many people on the Central Coast have been able to receive timely advice and treatment without needing to attend a busy ED.

“I encourage anyone unsure about the type of care they need to contact Healthdirect, who can guide them to the most appropriate service.”

Central Coast Local Health District Acting Chief Executive Jude Constable:

“We are really pleased to be able to offer the community this service and to help make it easier for them to receive the care they need for urgent health conditions, particularly at times when they might find it difficult to make an appointment with their usual GP.

“Long Jetty Urgent Care Service is providing an important alternative option for the community while helping to keep our EDS for people with more serious conditions.”

Shadow Minister for Corrections Anthony Roberts has called on the Minns Labor Government to abandon any plan to scale back Goulburn Correctional Centre and instead commit to protecting local jobs, and expanding the site as a major corrections, rehabilitation and law-and-order training hub for New South Wales.
 
Mr Roberts said Goulburn had been a cornerstone of the State’s correctional system since 1884 and should be strengthened for the future, not quietly diminished.
 
“Goulburn is one of the most historic and important correctional sites in New South Wales – and historic does not mean obsolete,” Mr Roberts said.
 
“As Shadow Minister for Corrections and having held the Counter-Terrorism portfolio in Government, I know how serious decisions about this site need to be. The answer is not to run Goulburn down. The answer is to build it up.”
 
Mr Roberts said the Government’s first obligation must be to the workforce.
 
“These correctional officers and their families cannot simply pack up and move. They have mortgages, children in local schools and deep ties to the Goulburn community, and their jobs must be protected and grown, not used as line items in a budget exercise,” Mr Roberts said.
 
Mr Roberts reaffirmed the Liberal and Nationals’ position that the Supermax must remain at Goulburn while the broader site should be expanded across minimum and maximum security, Corrective Services Industries, education and training.
 
“The Supermax stays. That is non-negotiable,” Mr Roberts said.
 
“At the same time, this site should expand its minimum-security capacity, refurbish education and vocational facilities, grow Corrective Services Industries, and better prepare suitable inmates for life after custody through real work, real skills and real discipline.”
 
“Transferring suitable inmates from Long Bay to Goulburn would both revitalise the Goulburn Correctional Centre and assist the Long Bay transition.”
 
“A NSW Liberal and Nationals Government will invest in Goulburn Corrections, utilising the proceeds of our proposal to transition Long Bay into a future housing development.”
 
Mr Roberts acknowledged the strong advocacy of the Member for Goulburn, Wendy Tuckerman MP, and called on the Minister for Corrections to release the Government’s full plan for the site.

Member for Goulburn Wendy Tuckerman MP said the facility should be operating at full capacity and supported by long-term investment.
 
“The Minns Labor Government has failed to plan and failed to recognise the importance of continued investment in this critical facility. That lack of foresight is putting local jobs and public safety at risk,” Mrs Tuckerman said.
 
Mrs Tuckerman challenged the Minister for Corrections to guarantee investment and job security for local officers.
 
“The people of Goulburn deserve answers. The workforce deserves certainty. What is the future bed capacity? What guarantees apply to local jobs? Has Long Bay transition capacity been properly assessed? Has an economic impact assessment for Goulburn been completed?” she said.
 
“Labor is looking at what it can shut down. The Liberals and Nationals are focused on what we can build.”

There are serious concerns about further delays on the stalled M6 motorway project on the eve of the 1 May deadline imposed by the Minns Labor Government, with no confirmation the contractor will resume work.
 
In March, Transport for NSW issued a formal default notice to the M6 contractor, directing it to resume substantive work, including tunnelling, on, or before 1 May 2026 or face potential legal action.
 
Shadow Minister for Roads, Mark Coure, said the Government’s silence as the deadline approaches is unacceptable.
 
“The Minns Labor Government set this deadline. They own it. But now, as 1 May approaches, they’re silent,” Mr Coure said.
 
“If the contractor fails to meet the deadline, what action is the Government taking? If they’re meeting it, why hasn’t the Government said so?”
 
“This is a critical moment for a $3.1 billion project, yet motorists are being kept in the dark.”
 
The M6 project has been effectively stalled since 2024 following major construction issues, with tunnelling yet to resume and completion now pushed out to at least 2028.
 
“Southern Sydney commuters have been waiting years for this road, only to be met with delays and disputes,” Mr Coure said.  
 
“This project has already been stuck in limbo for more than two years, while millions have reportedly been spent on legal disputes instead of getting the job done.”
 
“The Minister made a lot of noise only to go missing when it counts. The Minns Labor Government needs to front up today.”
 
Mr Coure is calling on the Minister to immediately disclose:
·        Whether the contractor has complied with the default notice;
·        What action will be taken if the deadline has not been met; and
·        A clear, updated timeline for completion of the M6.

I welcome today’s Interim Report of the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion.  
 
The antisemitic terrorist attack at Bondi was the worst terrorist attack our country has ever experienced. 15 people were killed and 40 more injured.  
 
Today, my thoughts are with the families and loved ones of those no longer with us, our Jewish community and the many people in my local community who still live with the pain of that day.  
 
Everyone has a moral obligation to stand with the Australian Jewish community to confront and eliminate antisemitism, and the work of the Royal Commission is an important part of that.  
 
The recommendation that police procedures in respect to Operation Jewish High Holy Day be applied to other high-risk Jewish festivals and events should be adopted by the NSW Government immediately. 
 
Jewish community members must feel protected as they celebrate their faith as is their right.  
 
I’ll continue to work with our Jewish community in the coming weeks and will have more to say as the Royal Commission process moves forward.