5. TARIANA TURIA (Co-Leader—Māori Party) Link to this
to the Minister of Health
Have instructions been issued to the Ministry of Health to prepare amending legislation to remove references to Te Tiriti o Waitangi from the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000; if so, why?
Hon PETE HODGSON (Minister of Health) Link to this
No, there have been no instructions, and there are no plans to issue instructions.
Does the Minister agree with the former Minister of Health the Hon Annette King that a Treaty clause in the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act provides a clearer exposition of what it interprets its Treaty obligations in the area of health to be, and can he tell the House what those obligations are; if not, why not?
Ann Hartley
Hon Tau HenareLife expectancy for Māori has improved by 2.6 years for males and 1.9 years for females, over the past 5 years, plus the gap in life expectancy between Māori and all New Zealanders has at last begun to narrow. Further, rates of smoking—a major risk factor—have declined. I acknowledge the interjection from Tau Henare, who said that obesity figures are going up; that is a serious issue, and the Government has placed a good deal of emphasis on it.
Barbara StewartCan the Minister demonstrate how references to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi in legislation have improved elective surgery outcomes for all New Zealanders?
Elective surgery is not done on an ethnic basis; it is done on a needs basis, and it always will be. However, many aspects of the New Zealand health system are directed towards Māori, because the disparities between Māori health and non-Māori health, though we now hope they may be reducing, are still wide and still unacceptable.
Hon Tony RyallWhy has the Government chosen to recognise the health needs of one part of the community over all others, on the basis of race?
The Government does not do so. What the Government does do is acknowledge that the disparities that cut across the various gradients of disparity in New Zealand are well known to this House, and if they are not, they should be. The disparities are substantially economic, as well as there being a further overlay of ethnic. In order to reduce disparities in our health system, the Government often targets policies towards people who are in most need, and that includes Māori sometimes—including through Māori providers. Interestingly, that policy was begun by National around 10 years ago.
Is the Minister satisfied with the way in which Treaty obligations are understood and implemented, when it was reported in the recent edition of the world’s leading medical journal, The Lancet, that there is growing evidence that Māori have less access to, and lower quality of, lifesaving treatments; if he is not, what does he intend to do about this situation?
The idea of growing trends is due to the fact that we have been looking harder for those trends—that is, the Decades of Disparity study. That is a three-phase study, the third chapter of which I have had the privilege to release in recent weeks. What is really interesting is that those researchers said at the conclusion of the third phase of the study that the next time such a study is done it will be called something different, because the National Government has gone and, with it, the decades of disparity.
I seek leave of the House to table an article entitled “What is the contribution of smoking and socioeconomic position to ethnic inequalities in mortality in New Zealand?”, which was published 10 days ago in The Lancet, and the memorandum to Cabinet’s social policy and health committee entitled “Treaty of Waitangi in Health Legislation”, which was issued by the Hon Annette King in August 2000.
Rt Hon Winston Peters Link to this
Does the Minister recall one Doug Graham, Bill English, and Tony Ryall inserting such provisions in legislation to do with health, when they were in power, and what is the word for that?
Hon Bill EnglishRt Hon Winston Peters Link to this
Oh yes, the member was; he was there. He might not have been awake, but he was there.
I can. Indeed, I have a report from the then Minister of Health, Wyatt Creech, in 1999 stating that the Government will recognise the Treaty by ensuring that public health and disability support services are responsive to Māori needs, and by continuing to enable greater Māori participation in the purchase and delivery of health and social services. The National Party is in denial about its record on this issue.
Rt Hon Winston Peters Link to this
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. My question had two parts to it. I asked in the second part whether there was a word for that, and whether it started with “h”.
Madam SPEAKER