I agree about Phil T Nick. He is an excellent campaigner Always has been from his days when he worked in our union and beyond. He also gets it. His speech in the House on the Employment Leave Bill was magnificent, talking about NZ First primping themselves around as the workers' friend when they have voted for all of the rollbacks for workers under the CoC. What Simeon has to do is clear the blockages from recruiting / employing staff which go right up the chain and back to Simeon's door with layers and layers of management decisions in between.
Everything you have to say today Nick is true here in the Wellington area. I know people who have waited in the corridor for 12 hours, others who was seen briefly sent home but told to come back tomorrow and I must also say that the nurses and doctors treatments and attitudes are positively saintly! It’s not their fault!
Hi Nick excellent korero today. I worked with Dom Fleischer in Christchurch ED for several years, he is an excellent Doctor and advocate for our community.
When government says it has to budget like a household we have to call bullshit on this.
As a sovereign state our government can issue currency, Willis would say that this is inflationary and she would be right if it went into buying houses, land etc.
However investing in our community by providing a health care system that enables people to get timely care is a productive benefit for the country.
It allows you and me to be productive, cuts sick leave, makes people healthier etc.
This is not inflationary it's productive.
I'm sick of their rhetoric.
Brown is the least qualified health secretary I've ever worked under.
I doubt the miniature of health would have been so understanding if they weren't polling under 30% with only months to the election. Anyway, $475m is peanuts compared to what Nickynoboats can spend by text.
Meanwhile let us NEVER forget that the "sorted" landlord/fat-cats in this country were immediately given an extra 2 Billion tax-cut by this outrageous government of grifter politicians...in order to help them pay for their private health insurance schemes...!!
The money wasted on the ferry debacle really annoys me, absolutely nothing to show for it. Money is being wasted on too many things we don’t need (surveying for gas and oil that isn’t there, seminars and junkets for politicians to court golden visa migrants, mining companies, and data companies being the biggest eaters of tax payers money). I shudder to think what we don’t know about how our taxes are being spent. The only thing we do know is that not enough is being spent on the basic things that matter, looking after our people and our country.
FFS, what's with the 'I' here? We have a public health system that is 'his' job to provide, that is seriously underfunded and run down. And he's doing sweet FA to fix that.
Thanks Nick, for highlighting what is happening in our emergency departments and public hospitals. Like you, I often get to see first-hand the dedication and sheer hard work of our health professionals and those working alongside them, although my observations tend to be outside GP and public hospital settings.
The reports you've highlighted are serious, disturbing and highly visible signs of a health system under immense pressure. As Simeon Brown is finding, it is becoming increasingly difficult to rely on a 'nothing to see here' response, blame doctors, nurses, officials or previous governments, or point to record funding as though the problems are all in our imagination.
Although I do wonder whether Simeon's apparent Road to Damascus moment has more to do with his campaign responsibilities than his role as Minister of Health—damage control and potholes, and an attempt to change the political narrative when what has been happening has become increasingly difficult to defend.
I am also in West Auckland. However, because of our personal circumstances, Jacki and I interact with other parts of the health system across Tāmaki Makaurau. Through my Young-onset Dementia advocacy, I also see how the wider system operates, or fails to operate, with little contingency and insufficient reserve capacity built into the system nationally.
I also occasionally engage with politicians, officials and organisations across the health and dementia sectors, so I hear a range of perspectives and, from time to time, have the opportunity to contribute my own. Most agree that the current health system isn't fit for our changing needs and the environment we find ourselves. The solutions though are much more contested. But there is enough common ground to give me some cautious optimism that we might see some positive changes, including not just from political parties, but other health-related organisation and such. But also pessimism that no one party, nor always others, seems to focus on the whole health system. Although, I do like some of the solutions being offered by the more socially progressive parties in their election manifestos.
We understandably focus on hospitals, GPs and waiting lists because these are the parts of the public health system most people know and encounter. However, Vote Health also supports a much wider system, including aged residential care, dementia services, home and community support, mental health, rehabilitation, public health and many other services. This is where I tend to critique politicians, even those with a medical professional background, who mirror the fragmentation of our whole system and how it interacts with other systems e.g. the linkage between our health and social support systems is obviously strong, but seldom do we see joined up policy. Aged care is one such area, and my Young-onset Dementia area is mainly seen as health related without looking at how our current social support and labour systems are creating harm and barriers.
From my lived experience as Jacki's carer and as a Young-onset Dementia advocate, many of those less visible services are also under considerable pressure. None of this excuses recent decisions. However, the problems described in your article, and those across the wider health system, have been decades in the making—almost a death by a thousand scalpel cuts, some deeper and longer-lasting than others.
I am a strong critic of the current Coalition, particularly in the areas where I have direct lived experience. I believe some of its decisions are making existing problems worse. But I cannot, hand on heart, place the whole situation on this Government or the current Minister.
Successive governments have failed to fully address longstanding workforce, funding, infrastructure and service gaps, and those failures have compounded over time. That includes the previous Labour-led Government, despite its increased spending and attempts at reform. We have had decades of restructuring, periods of underinvestment, and governments blaming one another, but few genuinely holistic and sustained attempts to address the health system as a whole.
Instead, we have too often tinkered with individual parts of the system and focused on immediate operational pressures, rather than tackling the long-term structural issues. Those are unlikely to win votes in a single election, but they are the changes that will make the greatest difference for all New Zealanders, both now and for future generations.
I have already registered for the August event with Phil Twyford, because I want to hear what Dr Ayesha Verrall has to say. Labour has yet to fully announce its policies across the wider areas funded through Vote Health, and I hope we hear more than commitments focused primarily on hospitals, emergency departments and general practice. Regardless, the local issues at our public hospital are equally important and Phil is doing a great job advocating for better for our local community.
We have a candidate standing in Labour, Dr Alex Hedley, who is a on his journey to be a specialist in Public Health, would be very interested in your comments, will be a very effective talent in the Labour Party team.
One of the challenges is funding; Andrea Black economist said New Zealand needs to decide if it wants a USA style health care at our current taxes, or a better Nordic style service, which does mean higher taxes.
It is already striking how many MPs have medical qualifications, and not only within Labour. If Alex can defeat the incumbent, Katie Nimon, in Napier, having someone in Parliament with public health expertise, alongside his broader medical experience, would be an excellent addition.
I also agree that tax reform, including broadening the tax base to reduce inequity and provide sustainable revenue, needs to be part of the solution.
Where I perhaps differ is that I do not think the debate is simply about choosing between a US-style system at today’s tax settings and a Nordic-style model with higher taxes. We also need to ask whether New Zealand’s broader fiscal and monetary policy settings, and the assumptions underpinning them since the economic reforms of the 1980s, remain fit for purpose.
Ganesh Ahirao, former Productivity Commission Chair, also known as economist Ganesh Nana, has published an excellent proposal for replacing the Public Finance Act, which is well worth reading. It contributes to the wider conversation about whether our existing framework continues to serve New Zealand’s social, economic and environmental needs.
That seems to be the much larger conversation we have largely avoided for several decades.
How much of that 'overspend' (which actually means 'under-budget') went directly to private providers, so didn't actually build public health system capacity?
So Simeon has now woken up to the fact that his cutting budgets for two and a half years has consequences. Methinks though he doth become concerned too much at this late stage. It makes one wonder if an election is imminent.
The other day I was at the eye clinic and it was exceptionally crowded because they were seeing 160 patients on that day. Staff still lovely and care still efficient.
I suggest that if anyone wants to know more about Simeon, his “work”(?), his ideas and ideology, and how on earth he still has a job, perhaps a read of his Wikipedia entry will enlighten, but certainly not encourage you about his story so far.
There seems to very little he hasn’t failed at, and his history of incompetence goes back much further….. trust me.
In 2014 I had to wait only 6 months for my right hip to be replaced and now my left hip is going out in sympathy. I dare say it's going to be at least 2 years before I can get it done.
I agree about Phil T Nick. He is an excellent campaigner Always has been from his days when he worked in our union and beyond. He also gets it. His speech in the House on the Employment Leave Bill was magnificent, talking about NZ First primping themselves around as the workers' friend when they have voted for all of the rollbacks for workers under the CoC. What Simeon has to do is clear the blockages from recruiting / employing staff which go right up the chain and back to Simeon's door with layers and layers of management decisions in between.
Simeon leans toward the hypocritical oath, rather than the Hippocratic one, it’s cheaper…
Everything you have to say today Nick is true here in the Wellington area. I know people who have waited in the corridor for 12 hours, others who was seen briefly sent home but told to come back tomorrow and I must also say that the nurses and doctors treatments and attitudes are positively saintly! It’s not their fault!
Hi Nick excellent korero today. I worked with Dom Fleischer in Christchurch ED for several years, he is an excellent Doctor and advocate for our community.
When government says it has to budget like a household we have to call bullshit on this.
As a sovereign state our government can issue currency, Willis would say that this is inflationary and she would be right if it went into buying houses, land etc.
However investing in our community by providing a health care system that enables people to get timely care is a productive benefit for the country.
It allows you and me to be productive, cuts sick leave, makes people healthier etc.
This is not inflationary it's productive.
I'm sick of their rhetoric.
Brown is the least qualified health secretary I've ever worked under.
Ditch the pricks in '26!!
You’re exactly right, unfortunately too few people understand this, including our politicians it seems.
Yes I fear you are right
Well said Russ.
I doubt the miniature of health would have been so understanding if they weren't polling under 30% with only months to the election. Anyway, $475m is peanuts compared to what Nickynoboats can spend by text.
Meanwhile let us NEVER forget that the "sorted" landlord/fat-cats in this country were immediately given an extra 2 Billion tax-cut by this outrageous government of grifter politicians...in order to help them pay for their private health insurance schemes...!!
The money wasted on the ferry debacle really annoys me, absolutely nothing to show for it. Money is being wasted on too many things we don’t need (surveying for gas and oil that isn’t there, seminars and junkets for politicians to court golden visa migrants, mining companies, and data companies being the biggest eaters of tax payers money). I shudder to think what we don’t know about how our taxes are being spent. The only thing we do know is that not enough is being spent on the basic things that matter, looking after our people and our country.
Brilliant summary, Diana...thanks.
$2.9 billion in fact.
Simeon Brown appears to have abandoned elective surgery targets. Last year, once on waiting list, it was 4 months target.
Now the target is 12 months.
And if they can't do it for you, they kick you off the waiting list, just like the emergency housing provisions!
FFS, what's with the 'I' here? We have a public health system that is 'his' job to provide, that is seriously underfunded and run down. And he's doing sweet FA to fix that.
Trying to create a Nordic level health service on USA taxes, it doesn't work.
Yes I noticed the 'I' too Jane. Totally agree with your comment.
A bit chilly here in Dunedin, Nick - and I can see a dusting of snow on Flagstaff from my kitchen window.
Thanks Nick, for highlighting what is happening in our emergency departments and public hospitals. Like you, I often get to see first-hand the dedication and sheer hard work of our health professionals and those working alongside them, although my observations tend to be outside GP and public hospital settings.
The reports you've highlighted are serious, disturbing and highly visible signs of a health system under immense pressure. As Simeon Brown is finding, it is becoming increasingly difficult to rely on a 'nothing to see here' response, blame doctors, nurses, officials or previous governments, or point to record funding as though the problems are all in our imagination.
Although I do wonder whether Simeon's apparent Road to Damascus moment has more to do with his campaign responsibilities than his role as Minister of Health—damage control and potholes, and an attempt to change the political narrative when what has been happening has become increasingly difficult to defend.
I am also in West Auckland. However, because of our personal circumstances, Jacki and I interact with other parts of the health system across Tāmaki Makaurau. Through my Young-onset Dementia advocacy, I also see how the wider system operates, or fails to operate, with little contingency and insufficient reserve capacity built into the system nationally.
I also occasionally engage with politicians, officials and organisations across the health and dementia sectors, so I hear a range of perspectives and, from time to time, have the opportunity to contribute my own. Most agree that the current health system isn't fit for our changing needs and the environment we find ourselves. The solutions though are much more contested. But there is enough common ground to give me some cautious optimism that we might see some positive changes, including not just from political parties, but other health-related organisation and such. But also pessimism that no one party, nor always others, seems to focus on the whole health system. Although, I do like some of the solutions being offered by the more socially progressive parties in their election manifestos.
We understandably focus on hospitals, GPs and waiting lists because these are the parts of the public health system most people know and encounter. However, Vote Health also supports a much wider system, including aged residential care, dementia services, home and community support, mental health, rehabilitation, public health and many other services. This is where I tend to critique politicians, even those with a medical professional background, who mirror the fragmentation of our whole system and how it interacts with other systems e.g. the linkage between our health and social support systems is obviously strong, but seldom do we see joined up policy. Aged care is one such area, and my Young-onset Dementia area is mainly seen as health related without looking at how our current social support and labour systems are creating harm and barriers.
From my lived experience as Jacki's carer and as a Young-onset Dementia advocate, many of those less visible services are also under considerable pressure. None of this excuses recent decisions. However, the problems described in your article, and those across the wider health system, have been decades in the making—almost a death by a thousand scalpel cuts, some deeper and longer-lasting than others.
I am a strong critic of the current Coalition, particularly in the areas where I have direct lived experience. I believe some of its decisions are making existing problems worse. But I cannot, hand on heart, place the whole situation on this Government or the current Minister.
Successive governments have failed to fully address longstanding workforce, funding, infrastructure and service gaps, and those failures have compounded over time. That includes the previous Labour-led Government, despite its increased spending and attempts at reform. We have had decades of restructuring, periods of underinvestment, and governments blaming one another, but few genuinely holistic and sustained attempts to address the health system as a whole.
Instead, we have too often tinkered with individual parts of the system and focused on immediate operational pressures, rather than tackling the long-term structural issues. Those are unlikely to win votes in a single election, but they are the changes that will make the greatest difference for all New Zealanders, both now and for future generations.
I have already registered for the August event with Phil Twyford, because I want to hear what Dr Ayesha Verrall has to say. Labour has yet to fully announce its policies across the wider areas funded through Vote Health, and I hope we hear more than commitments focused primarily on hospitals, emergency departments and general practice. Regardless, the local issues at our public hospital are equally important and Phil is doing a great job advocating for better for our local community.
Well done Paul, on your long informative letter.
We have a candidate standing in Labour, Dr Alex Hedley, who is a on his journey to be a specialist in Public Health, would be very interested in your comments, will be a very effective talent in the Labour Party team.
One of the challenges is funding; Andrea Black economist said New Zealand needs to decide if it wants a USA style health care at our current taxes, or a better Nordic style service, which does mean higher taxes.
Thanks, Leonie.
It is already striking how many MPs have medical qualifications, and not only within Labour. If Alex can defeat the incumbent, Katie Nimon, in Napier, having someone in Parliament with public health expertise, alongside his broader medical experience, would be an excellent addition.
I also agree that tax reform, including broadening the tax base to reduce inequity and provide sustainable revenue, needs to be part of the solution.
Where I perhaps differ is that I do not think the debate is simply about choosing between a US-style system at today’s tax settings and a Nordic-style model with higher taxes. We also need to ask whether New Zealand’s broader fiscal and monetary policy settings, and the assumptions underpinning them since the economic reforms of the 1980s, remain fit for purpose.
Ganesh Ahirao, former Productivity Commission Chair, also known as economist Ganesh Nana, has published an excellent proposal for replacing the Public Finance Act, which is well worth reading. It contributes to the wider conversation about whether our existing framework continues to serve New Zealand’s social, economic and environmental needs.
That seems to be the much larger conversation we have largely avoided for several decades.
Yes more discussion needed, and Govt's listening.
The Nordic reference was from Andrea Black about NZers making a tax v services choice. She was part of Aotearoa Tax Justice discussion.
Why only those 2 choices? As far as I can see neither fits Aotearoa's needs and circumstances.
How much of that 'overspend' (which actually means 'under-budget') went directly to private providers, so didn't actually build public health system capacity?
So Simeon has now woken up to the fact that his cutting budgets for two and a half years has consequences. Methinks though he doth become concerned too much at this late stage. It makes one wonder if an election is imminent.
The other day I was at the eye clinic and it was exceptionally crowded because they were seeing 160 patients on that day. Staff still lovely and care still efficient.
I suggest that if anyone wants to know more about Simeon, his “work”(?), his ideas and ideology, and how on earth he still has a job, perhaps a read of his Wikipedia entry will enlighten, but certainly not encourage you about his story so far.
There seems to very little he hasn’t failed at, and his history of incompetence goes back much further….. trust me.
Just read it . Yikes!
And rising.
In 2014 I had to wait only 6 months for my right hip to be replaced and now my left hip is going out in sympathy. I dare say it's going to be at least 2 years before I can get it done.