Federal Election 2025: Anthony Albanese set to announce new health centre in Adelaide he visits key South Australian seat
The Prime Minister is set to make a major health funding announcement for South Australia as Labor sets out to retain a key seat in the state.
Anthony Albanese will visit South Australia on Tuesday to make a major health funding announcement for Adelaide as Labor focuses on retaining a key seat in the state.
The Prime Minister will take to the seat of Boothby where he will pledge $150 million in funding for a new "state of the art" health centre for Adelaide's southern suburbs, the Daily Telegraph reported.
The plan would see the construction of Flinders HealthCARE Centre, a new 10-storey facility which Flinders University would also contribute $150 million towards, with a total cost of $300 million.
It would be built in the Flinders Health Precinct in Bedford Park.
“South Australians can see the determination of both state and federal governments to build a bigger health system,” South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas said.
“The Albanese government’s significant new investment in Flinders University’s HealthCARE Centre will help deliver the highly skilled workers needed to staff our growing hospital system, with 1,300 graduates each year.
“Nurses, midwives, ambos, speech pathologists, physios, psychologists, and other health professionals – this means more of them, trained in world class facilities. It also means up to 10,000 additional appointments each year for patients in the south.”
Flinders University has earmarked 2027 for when construction will begin.
Of the 1,300 health professionals set to graduate each year, it includes close to 500 nurses, 250 social workers, 128 occupational therapists and speech pathologists, 101 paramedics, 60 physiotherapists, more than 50 midwives and 24 clinical psychologists.
South Australia is the fourth state or territory Mr Albanese is visiting in as many days in a rip-roaring start to his election campaign, following appearances in Brisbane, Canberra and Perth.
The seat of Boothby is currently held by Labor MP Louise Miller-Frost, with a tight margin of 3.3 per cent after taking it from the Liberals at the 2022 election.
Liberal's candidate for Boothby is Nicolle Flint, a former MP who is aiming to return to parliament after she resigned in 2022 due to health problems and had held the seat for two terms from 2016.
Flint's replacement for the 2022 election, Rachel Swift, was unable to succeed her in the seat.
The Prime Minister's visit to SA comes as his approval rating has suffered a drop in The Guardian's Essential Poll.
While the two-point hit means 44 per cent of voters are approving and 46 per cent are disapproving, he remains favoured over Opposition Leader Peter Dutton, who has an approval rating of 41 per cent and disapproval rating of 47 per cent.
Labor has edged ahead of the Coalition (48 to 47 per cent) on a two-party plus basis after being behind the opposition in last month's poll.