WHAKAARO: I sit here frustrated at a Coalition Government that has turned its back on the recommendations of WAI 2575 Health Services and Outcomes Inquiry of the Waitangi Tribunal.
WAI 2575 informed the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Act and the establishment of Te Aka Whai Ora, the Māori Health Authority.
He pūtea hou mō te hauora Māori i te Tahua 2025? Kāhore!
In Budget 2025, there was negligible new money for hauora Māori services. That tells te iwi Māori that kaupapa Māori delivery is not a priority, with a Minister more interested in his Government’s health targets than closing the 7-8 year life expectancy gap between Māori and non-Māori.
Nā wai e teka e aroha ana tēnei kāwanatanga ki te Māori? He aroha kore.
On 14 June 2025, Health Minister Simeon Brown announced a range of sweeping legislative changes to the health system, which, while reported, have gone largely unchecked.
Tēnei pire hou? Ko ngā rerekētanga e pā ana ki te hauora o te Māori, anō ka whakakorea ngā mātāpono hauora kia tika ai ngā mahi ki roto i te hapori, ki roto i ngā hohipere, ki ngā taone nui, me ngā rohenga taiwhenua hoki. Engari kāhore ēnei rerekētanga e tino kite ana, e rongo ana.
The slash and burn of Pae Ora Healthy Futures will come into the house this week, and we are ready ourselves to hold the Government to account for this latest attack on Hauora Māori.
Engari he aha kē te raru o tēnei pire Pae Ora Healthy Futures Amendment Bill 2025?
On 14 June, Minister Brown announced his intention to “Repeal the Health Charter and Sector Principles to reduce red tape and make things clearer for everyone.”
Te Mauri o Rongo (Health Charter) and Health Sector Principles are clear: they are cornerstones of Tā Mason Durie’s vision for Pae Ora – and specify our path to healthy, thriving individuals, whānau and communities.
Minister Simeon Brown repealing these provisions in Pae Ora Healthy Futures will have a catastrophic impact on the health system, further stripping away protections for tangata whenua.
We’ve seen what happens when governments remove legal requirements for public sector agencies to provide for equitable outcomes between Māori and non-Māori, or to partner in delivery, or even just engage with Māori. It simply is not done.
The principles and charter aim for equity and tino rangatiratanga for hauora Māori. This provides a foundation that expects workers and unions to be involved in decisions that impact their work, and requires Māori to be involved in the planning, design, delivery, and implementation of hauora services.
The Government wants to repeal the Health Charter and Sector Principles, in Section 7 of the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Act, because these principles are the opposite of what the Government stands for.
Kei hea te reo o te Māori ki roto i te pūnaha hauora ināianei tonu?
Kua whakakorea Te Aka Whai Ora me ngā localities ki roto i te pūnaha hauora. Kua ngoikore ngā rautaki hauora Māori. Kua whakaitia Ngā Poari Hauora Māori, nō reira me aha tō tātou iwi Māori? Me pōti!
Minister Simeon Brown has now relegated our 15 Iwi Māori Partnership Boards to merely whānau voice, removing their influence across the health system, strategic commissioning of services for their rohe, and monitoring of health outcomes for Māori. Moumou!
The Minister has now elevated his own Hauora Māori Advisory Committee as the sole strategic voice for te iwi Māori to the Minister and the Board of Health NZ.
There are fears across the sector as to how our concerns and our vision for hauora are heard and seen across the health sector with these new sweeping changes to Pae Ora Healthy Futures.
When our tūpuna signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi, I bet they never expected to see their uri dying 7-8 years earlier than non-Māori.
None of the changes coming to Pae Ora Healthy Futures Legislation has any evidence that they will improve health outcomes for our people – Nāwai i Pae Ora, ka Pae Mate!
