The ACT Government is yet to pay Calvary the full compensation for its forcible acquisition of its public hospital in Canberra, with the two sides still negotiating the final amount payable to the Catholic health care organisation. Source: Canberra Times.
It’s been one year since ACT Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith announced the Government would compulsorily acquire Calvary Public Hospital Bruce, which is now called North Canberra Hospital.
The Government’s decision to acquire the hospital prompted an unsuccessful legal challenge from Calvary, who had been running the publicly funded hospital since 1979.
The acquisition legislation requires the Government to provide compensation to Calvary. The Government has already paid $23 million for costs associated with the transition, such as redundancy payments and data transfer.
The final amount is expected to be far greater. The Government is waiting for Calvary to provide its primary claim.
Legislation passed the territory’s Parliament last May and the Government officially took control of the hospital on July 3, 2023. The Government also developed a regulation to govern how compensation for Calvary would be determined.
Under the Government’s regulation, the territory is responsible for paying for the market value of the crown lease for the hospital land on acquisition day, any reasonable increase or decrease in the value of the hospital land and any costs incurred by Calvary through the transition.
But the regulation also recognises Calvary was given the land for free and it was held by the organisation at no charge. It also recognises certain buildings and improvements on the land were funded by the territory.
FULL STORY
ACT govt, Calvary still negotiating costs a year on from takeover (By Lucy Bladen, Canberra Times)
