Category: Politics

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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.

 

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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.”

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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.

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Public transport fare hikes a disaster

Source: Green Party

The Government’s directive to councils to increase bus and train fares substantially over the next few years is a bitter pill to swallow for communities across the country.

“Increasing the price to use public transport will be a disaster,” says the Green Party’s Transport spokesperson, Julie Anne Genter.

“Aotearoa was once a country where buses, electric trams and passenger trains were affordable, accessible, and available right across the country. It can be again.  

“The Coalition Government is now forcing public transport fares up further, adding more pressure on families and young people already struggling to make ends meet. 

“The Government’s changes to public transport could result in fares more than doubling in some regions. This comes after they cancelled free and half-price public transport for children and young people earlier this year. 

“It’s bad for the climate, bad for our cities, and it hurts those on low incomes most of all.

“This directive will make it much harder and more expensive for people to get around their towns and cities.

“It will also force some people to use cars instead, which means more traffic, air pollution and emissions.

“It makes no sense, when we must collectively reduce emissions, and when the economy is still reeling from layoffs and cancelled projects, to increase public transport fares. 

“Actions speak louder than words. Simeon Brown’s agenda is the opposite of climate action and is completely out of touch with what our cities need.  

“The Coalition Government must commit to funding a public transport network for the benefit of everyone in this country and for the good of the planet,” says Julie Anne Genter.

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Dr Parmjeet Parmar raises crime and fare dodging concerns with Auckland Transport

Source: ACT Party

Auckland-based ACT MP Dr Parmjeet Parmar met with Auckland Transport yesterday to relay concerns about crime, public safety, and fare dodging on Auckland’s bus network.

“I’ve heard directly from bus drivers, operators, and passengers who are frustrated by Auckland Transport’s slow response to safety issues on public transport,” says Dr Parmar.

“Yesterday’s meeting was an important opportunity to bring these concerns directly to Auckland Transport’s attention – particularly on behalf of those operators who feel like they are being ignored by the agency.

“I stressed the urgency of rolling out safety measures for bus drivers, who should not have to fear for their physical safety while doing their jobs.

“I was pleased that Auckland Transport has committed to providing data on the number of warnings and fines issued for fare evasion. However, I was not left with the impression that Auckland Transport sees fare dodging as a serious issue, despite the agency being warned repeatedly that fare dodging leads to violence.

“Weak enforcement of existing rules has fostered a culture of entitlement, where some passengers refuse to meet their obligation to pay.

“In our meeting, Auckland Transport identified racism as a driver of the abuse, with many bus drivers being from ethnic communities. This makes the issue of violence on buses even more alarming. If someone thinks that their race, or the race of the bus driver, entitles them to ride for free, that requires a strong response from Auckland Transport and Police.

“Data from 2021 showed that only 13 per cent of those caught fare dodging were issued a ticket across all modes of public transport, with estimations of up to two million in fares being dodged in two years. A stronger message needs to be sent that fare dodging is unacceptable.

“It is vital that any public transport system has the trust and buy-in from its users. If people do not feel safe to work on or use public transport, they won’t do it.

“Auckland Transport says limited resourcing makes it difficult to deploy transport officers at the scale bus drivers would like. ACT says there has to be a solution here. I will continue to listen to the concerns of all affected parties and push for Auckland Transport to act more decisively.”

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Green Party appalled by woeful Government offer to school support staff

Source: Green Party

Support staff across Aotearoa have been dealt yet another devastating blow with the release of the latest collective agreement offer from the Government.

The proposed settlement offers a 0% pay increase to the vast majority of staff and caps increases for others at a mere 1.25%. On top of this, no commitments have been made on critical issues such as sick leave, job security, professional learning and development, or mileage.

“This appalling offer is a slap in the face to the essential support staff who keep our schools running,” says the Green Party’s Education Spokesperson, Dr Lawrence Xu-Nan.

“These staff members are essential to the education, care, and stewardship of our tamariki and rangatahi every single day. Today’s offer shows how little the government values their contribution.

“This offer doesn’t just fall short; it outright dismisses the value of education as a fundamental public good. We cannot continue to treat the public services we all rely on as a business with constant cost and corner-cutting. This approach will come at a serious expense to our communities. 

“This offer speaks to the lack of care and consideration this Government has for anything that isn’t tax cuts for the wealthy. Prioritising trickle-down tax cuts at the expense of our schools, children, and communities sets a dangerous precedent. 

“The Green Party stands with support staff in their call for a fair and equitable resolution that reflects the essential role they play in the education sector. It’s time for the government to put words into action and invest in the future of tamariki in Aotearoa by respecting and properly compensating the staff who support them,” says Dr Lawrence Xu-Nan.

NOTES:

  • The pay increase offer amounts to a zero increase to members on all bands who would otherwise receive a step increase during the next three years. Those who are at the maximum available step/grade, and those at the bottom (Grade A Step 1) of the teacher aide scale, are being offered 1.25% + 1% + 1% each year for a three-year term.
  • Under this offer, the majority of aides would get nothing more for the next three years than they would receive anyway through annual progression. For example, more than 85% of teacher aides would not receive a pay rise under the Government’s offer.
  • The Ministry has advised that aides should view their annual salary progression steps as their ‘pay rise’.