Haslam Pushes for Parliamentary Inquiry into Eyre Peninsula Health Services
MEDIA RELEASE
Date: 16 February 2026
Independent candidate for Flinders, Craig Haslam, has announced a major commitment to push for a full parliamentary inquiry into the state of health services on the Eyre Peninsula, saying regional communities have been forced to accept “second-tier healthcare” for far too long.
Mr Haslam said families, older residents and frontline workers across the region are dealing daily with treatment delays, workforce shortages, stretched emergency services and limited access to GPs and specialist care.
“The Eyre Peninsula’s health system is all but broken. It’s not good enough, and it demands serious, urgent and transparent scrutiny,” he said. Mr Haslam said the Flinders region lacks effective mental health crisis services, despite the Eyre Peninsula's scale and economic contribution.
Mr Haslam said a parliamentary inquiry would provide an objective assessment of what is working, what is failing and what must change — while finally giving local communities a genuine voice in shaping their own health system.
He said the inquiry must examine funding levels, service gaps, workforce pressures, emergency response capacity, mental health services, preventative care and health outcomes compared with metropolitan areas.
“A strong health system is the foundation of a fair society,” Mr Haslam said. “People on the Eyre Peninsula contribute an enormous amount to this state, and we deserve health services that reflect that reality.”
He said the inquiry must be independent, credible and thorough — “not a box-ticking exercise” — and should deliver a clear roadmap for strengthening regional healthcare and rebuilding trust.
“I will push for bipartisan support and insist that the findings are acted upon. Health should never be a political football.”
