Bathurst Integrated Medical Centre is a private facility that will not be treating public patients.

A true free market dictates that it is viable without public funding; council has no business whatsoever spending ratepayers' money on this.

The use of the car park behind the RSL Club is more than enough of a contribution to this private venture given the RSL gave the car park to council many years ago.

OTHER LETTERS ABOUT THE MEDICAL CENTRE AND CAR PARK:

Too often we are seeing the private sector put its hand out for public money; Qantas given billions in handouts (not a loan) during COVID is just one egregious example.

If your business is not profitable without handouts from government, get out. You either have a business with not enough demand for your goods/services or, in my view, you are incompetent, in which case get out of the way and let somebody who can make it profitable do the job.

This is the true free market at work.