Covid Inquiry report underlines need to invest in Health

Source: Green Party

The Green Party says the report from the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Covid-19 Response underlines the need for proper investment in our health system so we are prepared for future pandemics. 

“We need to support our health system so it’s in a position to support our communities through any future pandemics,” says the Green Party Health Spokesperson Hūhana Lyndon.

“Any future pandemic response must put the health of our people first. It is also essential that we provide our most vulnerable communities, including our Māori and Pasifika, immunocompromised, disabled, elderly whānau and young people, with the care they need. 

“However, this will be near impossible under a health system reduced to its bare bones. 

“The Commissioner has noted how he’d be concerned if he was in a country that was cutting back its public health services while a pandemic remains a possibility. Unfortunately, that is the situation we are in now.

“The report’s recommendations make clear the health system should be more resilient and prepared, and this requires adequate resourcing. That won’t happen if the Government keeps slashing and burning jobs in public health. 

“The report also highlighted that the pandemic response had glaring gaps where it related to Māori, with the disadvantages they already faced in healthcare being exacerbated in the pandemic response. We must ensure our response to future pandemics does not worsen such inequities. 

“Despite the disparities, Māori were very effective at employing local networks to provide support on the front line in various lockdown stages, which speaks to the benefits of having pandemic response strategies developed with tangata whenua. It’s critical that Māori are included in all phases of the response. 

“The Government must begin to build an equitable health system that prioritises our most vulnerable communities and is well prepared to weather future pandemics,” says Hūhana Lyndon.

Waititi Orders Police Withdraw from Matapihi

Source: Te Pati Maori

Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki is demanding that the Police Minister immediately remove the heavy Police presence in the Matapihi community, as hundreds of officers saturate the Western Bay of Plenty area.

“Minister Mitchell must intervene immediately and order the removal of the armed Police presence in Matapihi, in my electorate,” said Rawiri Waititi, MP for Waiariki.

“The New Zealand Police are causing public disorder in the Matapihi community, harassing and distressing residents, including kaumātua and kuia.

“We have armed officers obstructing access to private property and even urupā where loved ones are buried. This is a disgusting overreach and must be withdrawn immediately.

“This Government is posturing in Māori communities because of their absurd gang-patch ban, diverting significant Police resources to enforce it, while causing more harm than good.

“Iwi, marae, and whānau are working really hard on the ground to ensure tikanga on Marae and urupā are adhered to. Police do not need to be part of that, they have no mandate, and should not be using tangaihanga as an opportunity to clip their gang patch ticket.

“We don’t need hundreds of Police in this small community, aggravating and preying on an already hard time for whānau—such as tangihanga.

“The Minister must withdraw his armed Police force immediately,” Waititi said.

Release: Opposition parties unite on way forward to protect ECE

Source: New Zealand Labour Party

Early childhood education needs to be treated as a public good, say Labour, the Green Party, and Te Pāti Māori in their newly released report of findings from public hearings they held into the Government’s ECE Regulatory Review.

The hearings, held in August and September, arose out of concern from early childhood kaiako and kaimahi and from the community that the Government’s sector review could bring about sweeping change, serving corporate and business interests rather children and those working in the profession.

Labour’s education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says it’s clear that early childhood education is a public good, as it sets the foundations for the rest of a child’s life.

“The role early childhood education plays in a child’s life is immense. What happens in their early years including how they learn affects them forever.

“ECE should not be used as a commercial opportunity to make a profit at the expense of the wellbeing and quality of education for tamariki and the working conditions of those who teach them.

“There are two competing visions for early childhood in Aotearoa New Zealand, what we found through our public hearings was that the majority of those we spoke with want a sector that is of the highest quality so tamariki can thrive and grow.”

The report highlights the need for regulation to protect from privatisation and diminished standards and working conditions, recommendations for tamariki wellbeing, fair and adequate funding, recognition of the unique status and autonomy of Kōhanga and Puna Reo.

Tākuta Ferris, education spokesperson for Te Pāti Māori, says the need to prioritise tamariki Māori came across strongly.

“We need to continue to invest in Reo Māori education in every community, including training for kaimahi Māori in all early immersion services, like Kōhanga Reo and Puna Reo.

The Green Party’s early childhood education spokesperson Teanau Tuiono emphasised culturally responsive education should be available to all tamariki, with Government having a responsibility to make sure the necessary resources were available to all early childhood education centres:

“Child-centred, culturally responsive early childhood education is the foundation for a future that sees our tamariki thrive. By properly resourcing our kaiako to provide quality education, we give our youngest learners the tools to navigate life with confidence, empathy, and a deep sense of belonging, empowering them to reach their full potential.

“To do this well, we must engage with our Māori, Pasifika, and migrant communities to ensure education reflects their values, aspirations and ultimately, their needs.

“These voices matter. We’ve heard, loud and clear, from our kaiako, whānau and wider communities during this consultation process: any decisions about early childhood education must hold the needs and well-being of children at the heart of every policy and every practice.”

“Labour, The Greens and Te Pāti Māori want to ensure early childhood kaiako and kaimahi and their communities can have their voices heard. The issues they have raised have a huge impact on our collective future as a nation – early childhood education not only needs to be public good but for all decisions about the sector made with a child-centric lens.”

Click here to read the report


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Release: 1500 Te Whatu Ora cuts will hurt New Zealanders’ health

Source: New Zealand Labour Party

Massive cuts across Health New Zealand/Te Whatu Ora demonstrate National’s willingness to risk the health of New Zealanders.

“Without a functioning well resourced Public Health Service, data and digital services, and services that support Māori and Pacific communities, the health of New Zealanders will suffer,” said Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall.

“We are currently experiencing a whooping cough epidemic in New Zealand and are at risk of a measles outbreak, and they’re cutting public health services. None of this makes sense.

“It looks like New Zealanders’ health takes second place to tax cuts.

“Health Minister Dr Shane Reti would’ve seen same the same advice as I did, that IT services at Te Whatu Ora were on the brink, and this level of cuts will put continuity of services and New Zealanders’ health information at risk. 

“In the Government’s quest to cut nearly $2 billion from Te Whatu Ora’s budget, they are risking more epidemics, less equitable health outcomes for Māori and Pacific people, and stripping out the workforce that keeps our health system running.

“Today, Dr Reti congratulated hauora Māori providers for their vaccination work in the community, while at the same time, Te Whatu Ora will cut Māori and Pacific health workers. After abolishing Te Aka Whai Ora/the Māori Health Authority, he is still trying to cut services for Māori.

“The Government found money to give tobacco companies a tax break but are cutting back on funding for Māori health. By making these huge cuts, they are taking New Zealanders’ health backwards,” said Ayesha Verrall.


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Release: Government to make public transport more expensive… again

Source: New Zealand Labour Party

The Government’s decision to push for significant fare increases on buses and trains over the next few years is a huge blow to communities across the country.

“Raising fares by up to 70 percent will hit families, students, and workers who rely on public transport daily. Public transport should be affordable for everyone, not an extra financial burden,” Labour transport spokesperson Tangi Utikere said.

“The Government’s already scrapped Labour’s free and half-price transport for children and young people, and now it’s clear they have no real plan to properly fund our public transport system.

“In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis and a climate emergency, these fare hikes make it harder for people to choose affordable, sustainable transport options.

“Simeon Brown is out of touch with everyday New Zealanders. Forcing people who have no alternative but to use public transport to now bear the brunt of their budget shortfalls is simply wrong.

“The Government must prioritise public transport funding to ensure it works for everyone—providing affordable, reliable options that also help protect our planet,” Tangi Utikere said.


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Government’s First Year a ‘Catastrophe for Māori’

Source: Te Pati Maori

Te Pāti Māori is calling the Government’s first year a catastrophe for Māori, following a year of policies that have done nothing but marginalise tangata-whenua.

Today marks one year since the coalition was sworn into power.

“This year has been an absolute catastrophe for Māori. This Government has fast-tracked us back towards the colonised and assimilated,” said co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer.

“This Government is so focussed on taking tangata whenua backwards that it has become horribly clear that they are willing to finish off the colonisation process.

“They disestablished the Māori Health Authority and repealed smokefree laws to keep us dying 7 to 10 years earlier.

“They redirected $3 billion in tax cuts to benefit landlords while pouring funds into mega-prisons, perpetuating cycles of homelessness and incarceration for our people.

“They have withdrawn investment in Te Reo Māori and actively suppressed its use, striking at the heart of our culture and identity.

“They have accelerated the exploitation of our natural resources, prioritising corporate profits over the well-being of our people and environment.

“They’re stripping Te Tiriti protections from the care and management of our tamariki, disenfranchising whānau and enabling the systemic theft of our children.

“And they are progressing to remove Te Tiriti from 28 pieces of legislation, whilst actively trying to erase and redefine it.

“These are only some of the examples that perpetuate the imperial agenda of colonisation.

“This Government’s agenda serves corporate greed – benefiting the 2% who hold 50% of the wealth – while ignoring the voices of tangata whenua and the needs of our nation. We must continue to stand together as we did for the Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti.

“We must remain vigilant, continue to mobilise, and work together to ensure this is a one-term Government,” Ngarewa-Packer said.

 

Public Health Service’s anti-McDonald’s crusade shows why cost cutting is needed

Source: ACT Party

“The National Public Health Service’s decision to invest time and resources into opposing the resource consent for a McDonald’s in Wanaka shows exactly why cost-cutting measures are justified,” says ACT Health spokesman Todd Stephenson, who is based in Queenstown.

“This is the same agency that waged war on food trucks in Invercargill, trying to shut down operators who didn’t serve healthy options.

“These taxpayer-funded busybodies have either misread or are wilfully undermining the direction of the Coalition Government on wasteful spending and resource management.

“They are exploiting the resource management process to impose their own nanny state agenda. As one commenter pointed out, half their submission against the proposed McDonald’s is based on health concerns irrelevant to resource management, the other half concerns matters on which the Public Health Service has no expertise, from climate change and litter to aesthetics and ‘cultural wellbeing’.

“The Public Health Service is meant to be responsible for managing infectious diseases, but during a global pandemic they were so useless they had to be sidelined, with the Ministry of Health leading the COVID response.

“ACT welcomes reports of impending cost-cutting measures at the Public Health Service. Ideally the Government would go further and strip the Service right back to its core function of responding to infectious diseases, like the current whooping cough outbreak.

“We’re also cheering on the Minister for RMA Reform, aided by Simon Court, as he develops a resource management system that puts property rights first and sidelines the busybodies.”

Release: National has given up on climate action

Source: New Zealand Labour Party

Climate action is missing from the list of things National is patting themselves on the back for one year on from becoming government.

“You won’t see anything about climate as National marks a year in government, because they know they’re failing. All Christopher Luxon has done is talk and take New Zealand backwards,” Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said.

“National has undone years of progress to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prepare for a climate-resilient future.

“This lack of action will leave our country more exposed to extreme weather and takes us further away from the jobs a low-carbon, sustainable future would provide.

“National is failing to meet the climate challenge – they know it and the world knows it.

“National has dismantled programmes that were making a difference; work that Labour was doing to reduce emissions, help big emitters quit fossil fuels, make electric vehicles more affordable, and help transition to renewable energy. National has also kicked the can down the road by removing agriculture from the ETS and delaying pricing.

“The Government is doing nothing to meet its goal of doubling renewable energy.

Other things National has done to wind back climate action:

  • scrapped $3 billion in climate-related work in the Budget
  • whittled down Warmer Kiwi Homes
  • ended the Climate Emergency Response Fund
  • initiated a review on methane emissions when the science is already set
  • reversed the ban on oil and gas exploration
  • introduced the first-track legislation which allows the override of environmental laws
  • scrapped a fund that enabled the renewable energy market

“At home, the Climate Change Commission has sounded the alarm over the Government’s policies and pointed out we’re at risk of missing our climate goals.  

“National must listen to the climate experts and take action on climate change that’s not just hot air,” Chris Hipkins said.


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Release: Minister leaves Community Housing Providers out in the cold

Source: New Zealand Labour Party

Housing Minister Chris Bishop’s speech to Community Housing Providers today should have been titled ‘we want you to build houses, but we refuse to spend money so you’re on your own’.

“Chris Bishop is all talk when it comes to housing. It was hoped that in his speech there would’ve been government support for desperately needed public housing,” Labour’s housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said.

“Instead, there was no commitment to build any more public homes, no further support for the community housing providers and no increases to Income Related Rent Subsidies.

“Everyone was hoping the government would at least announce it would guarantee loans for the newly established community housing funding agency to make them cheaper. But again, no commitment from the Minister.

“Labour delivered more than 14,000 public homes over the six years we were in government, alongside the community housing sector. What have we seen from National so far? Auckland set to lose 199 public homes and Canterbury set to lose nearly 100.

“This is what happens when you cancel projects and pause hundreds of others. We can’t forget the last National Government ended up with 1,500 fewer public homes than it started with and sucked out $576 million in dividends from Housing New Zealand.

“If National delivered additional homes at the rate Labour did, we would become much closer to solving the housing crisis.

“And in a cover up to stop the problem looking like it is growing, the Government’s solution is to change the rules for emergency housing and stop people from even being able to go on the waiting list. For Chris Bishop to say they are ending the emergency housing crisis is disingenuous.

“They are taking us backwards and choosing to make people homeless instead of investing in assets that will provide warm dry homes” Kieran McAnulty said.


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Release: Chris Hipkins sad to hear about Nikki Kaye

Source: New Zealand Labour Party

“The news today that Nikki Kaye has passed away after her long battle with cancer is incredibly sad,” Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said.

“Nikki Kaye and I were opposite numbers at Parliament in the education portfolio, and I would describe us very fondly as frenemies.

“I had a lot of respect for her and how she went about her work.

“I didn’t agree with all of her decisions, but found her immensely reasonable. She poured her heart and soul into the electorate and she always pushed for better for children and young people.

“I am very sad to hear the news today. My condolences to her family, friends and former colleagues. This isn’t news I expected to hear today,” Chris Hipkins said.