Shane Reti. Photo: Angus Dreaver
Parliament has made progress towards disestablishing Te Aka Whai Ora / Māori Health Authority, coming closer to fulfilling one of the coalition government's promises, but debate will continue tomorrow.
The first two readings passed with support of the three coalition parties, but with debate ending for the night at 10pm, further debate and a vote on the third reading will take place on Wednesday morning.
The Pae Ora (Disestablishment of the Māori Health Authority) Amendment Bill has been introduced under urgency, prompting cries of outrage from the opposition.
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti called it a "narrow bill" which "was canvassed at length on the campaign trail".
"Substantively, this bill meets our hundred-day commitment and delivers on our intent," he said at the outset of the bill's first reading.
"While the particular version of the dream that the Māori Health Authority laid out is coming to an end today, I want to paint a different dream, one that will be outcomes driven, providing greater devolved decision-making that will deliver care as close to the home and the hapū as possible.
"There is organisational expertise in the Māori Health Authority, and I want to retain that. I say to Māori Health Authority staff to please join me, guide me, and help us together to row a different waka towards better health outcomes. This bill enables that."
Reti said Te Aka Whai Ora's "staff and functions will transfer mostly to Health New Zealand, with a few to the Ministry of Health".
Labour's Peeni Henare, associate spokesperson for health, in response called it part of the "the three-headed taniwha otherwise known as the coalition government's … regressive Māori policy agenda".
He pointed to the work Māori organisations did in getting the country vaccinated during the pandemic as an example of how "Te Aka Whai Ora was here not just for Māori but for the betterment of this entire nation".
The Green Party's Hūhana Lyndon called it "day one of the recolonisation of hauora Māori in Aotearoa New Zealand".
ACT's Todd Stephenson said "dividing New Zealanders into two ethnic groups to receive public services does not help us deliver better public services".
"This bill also doesn't remove the ability for Māori to be consulted, and we actually want to see more Māori health providers actually providing care at the coalface. We want to get rid of this bureaucracy and actually get down to delivery."
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer took exception to ACT's characterisation of the authority.
"Well, excuse us. Excuse us for having to have a separate need to be able to have our wellbeing addressed, because we are dying earlier than everyone else."
She said she was "ashamed" to be present in the House during the bill's reading.
Labour MP and former Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said it was disappointing "something which is the culmination of so much study and work and consultation in Aotearoa is now being removed by a government who refuses to listen, under urgency, with no opportunity for select committee and no opportunity for the Waitangi Tribunal to be able to comment on this thing of critical importance to Māori".
"It is shameful, and, Dr Reti, my view is that your conduct in this is cowardly."
A Waitangi Tribunal hearing challenging the disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora was set down for between 29 February and 1 March.
The lead claimant bringing the Waitangi Tribunal claim, Lady Tureiti Moxon, called the move to pass the bill through urgency before the claim could be heard a "breach of good faith".
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon earlier defended rushing the bill through.
"We have opposed the Māori Health Authority right from conception, we've been consistent about that in opposition. We went to an election campaign, we talked about what we would do in government ... we're following through on that," he said.
"The Waitangi Tribunal will go through its process but we as a government are also going through our process ... we are doing this because it's part of our 100-day plan, it's a long-standing commitment that we've made, we've opposed it from the get go."
The bill passed its first reading 68 (National, ACT, NZ First) to 54 (Labour, Greens, Te Pāti Māori).
Parliament will convene again tomorrow at 9am to vote on the third reading.
