No honeyed words on the Beehive website about Meng Foon – nor about the role of ethnicity when priorities for surgery are decided
Two ministers and/or their press secretaries have gone missing in action.
We suggest this because Point of Order can find no mention on the government’s official website of news that Meng Foon has resigned as Race Relations Commissioner or – with much more drastic implications for New Zealanders – news that ethnicity has become a key consideration in Auckland when a patient’s place on surgical waiting lists is determined.
The Government did not miss the opportunity to let us know Meng Foon would become the Race Relations Commissioner.
In July 2019, Justice Minister Andrew Little announced retiring Gisborne Mayor Meng Foon had been appointed the next Race Relations Commissioner.
“He has an outstanding record as a relationship builder and walks comfortably in the pākehā world, the Māori world, the Chinese community and other communities making up New Zealand.”
News of his resignation came from the Human Rights Commission, which said Foon had confirmed his intention to resign, following revelations in April that he and his family made donations to Labour MP Kiritapu Allan, including rent subsidy arrangements for her campaign office, in 2020, as well as a National Party candidate.
In addition, a company of which Foon is a director had been found to be receiving an income from the Ministry of Social Development for the provision of accommodation, including emergency housing.
His resignation means someone other than Foon may be called on to determine if it is racist to decide priorities for surgery on the basis of ethnicity. Or – to the contrary – whether it is racist to complain about ethnicity being a determining consideration.
Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said in May that Budget 2023 was focused on three service priorities – winter, workforce and waitlists – as it builds “a more equitable health system”.
She said $118 million had been allocated “to help reduce waiting lists by improving patient flow, enabling planned care to be delivered in primary settings and freeing up inpatient hospital beds, allowing for surgeries to go ahead”.
Today we learn (not on the government’s website, but from the New Zealand Herald) that Auckland surgeons must now consider ethnicity in prioritising patients for operations – some are not happy.
The article says Auckland surgeons are now being required to consider a patient’s ethnicity alongside other factors when deciding who should get an operation first.
Several surgeons say they are upset by the policy, which was introduced in Auckland in February and gave priority to Māori and Pacific Island patients – on the grounds that they have historically had unequal access to healthcare.
And:
Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand has introduced an Equity Adjustor Score, which aims to reduce inequity in the system by using an algorithm to prioritise patients according to clinical priority, time spent on the waitlist, geographic location (isolated areas), ethnicity, and deprivation level.
In the ethnicity category, Māori and Pasifika are top of the list, while European New Zealanders and other ethnicities, like Indian and Chinese, are lower-ranked.
Health Minister Ayesha Verrall (who has had several months to brag about this on the Government’s official website) did provide some comment.
She said there were “important reasons” why ethnicity was a factor when it came to prioritising healthcare.
She pointed to the Government-commissioned, independent review of the health system in 2018, which found the system did not serve everyone well and produced unequal outcomes, particularly for vulnerable populations.
“The reformed health system seeks to address inequities for Māori and Pacific people who historically have a lower life expectancy and poor health outcomes,” Verrall said.
So what has been posted on the government’s official website over the past few days?
Just three new announcements (at time of writing).
The Government did not miss the opportunity to let us know Meng Foon would become the Race Relations Commissioner.
In July 2019, Justice Minister Andrew Little announced retiring Gisborne Mayor Meng Foon had been appointed the next Race Relations Commissioner.
“He has an outstanding record as a relationship builder and walks comfortably in the pākehā world, the Māori world, the Chinese community and other communities making up New Zealand.”
News of his resignation came from the Human Rights Commission, which said Foon had confirmed his intention to resign, following revelations in April that he and his family made donations to Labour MP Kiritapu Allan, including rent subsidy arrangements for her campaign office, in 2020, as well as a National Party candidate.
In addition, a company of which Foon is a director had been found to be receiving an income from the Ministry of Social Development for the provision of accommodation, including emergency housing.
His resignation means someone other than Foon may be called on to determine if it is racist to decide priorities for surgery on the basis of ethnicity. Or – to the contrary – whether it is racist to complain about ethnicity being a determining consideration.
Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said in May that Budget 2023 was focused on three service priorities – winter, workforce and waitlists – as it builds “a more equitable health system”.
She said $118 million had been allocated “to help reduce waiting lists by improving patient flow, enabling planned care to be delivered in primary settings and freeing up inpatient hospital beds, allowing for surgeries to go ahead”.
Today we learn (not on the government’s website, but from the New Zealand Herald) that Auckland surgeons must now consider ethnicity in prioritising patients for operations – some are not happy.
The article says Auckland surgeons are now being required to consider a patient’s ethnicity alongside other factors when deciding who should get an operation first.
Several surgeons say they are upset by the policy, which was introduced in Auckland in February and gave priority to Māori and Pacific Island patients – on the grounds that they have historically had unequal access to healthcare.
And:
Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand has introduced an Equity Adjustor Score, which aims to reduce inequity in the system by using an algorithm to prioritise patients according to clinical priority, time spent on the waitlist, geographic location (isolated areas), ethnicity, and deprivation level.
In the ethnicity category, Māori and Pasifika are top of the list, while European New Zealanders and other ethnicities, like Indian and Chinese, are lower-ranked.
Health Minister Ayesha Verrall (who has had several months to brag about this on the Government’s official website) did provide some comment.
She said there were “important reasons” why ethnicity was a factor when it came to prioritising healthcare.
She pointed to the Government-commissioned, independent review of the health system in 2018, which found the system did not serve everyone well and produced unequal outcomes, particularly for vulnerable populations.
“The reformed health system seeks to address inequities for Māori and Pacific people who historically have a lower life expectancy and poor health outcomes,” Verrall said.
So what has been posted on the government’s official website over the past few days?
Just three new announcements (at time of writing).
Latest from the Beehive
Recognising the critical role, value and diverse contributions of volunteers is key to National Volunteer Week which kicks off today, Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector Priyanca Radhakrishnan says.
The Government’s plan to increase the housing choices has taken another step forward with the acquisition of a large parcel of land in Halswell, Christchurch, to keep up with housing demand as part of the Kāinga Ora Land Programme.
Government action during the most challenging economic conditions in a generation or more has resulted in a significant drop in food insecurity rates.
The unpaid staff at Point of Order should be chuffed about this being National Volunteer Week, of course. Maybe we will be celebrated.
The Minister said:
“A key theme for the King’s Coronation last month was to recognise volunteers. This week, there’ll be an opportunity to give volunteers a Big Shout Out through a campaign to publicly acknowledge their efforts.
“The Government is supporting Volunteering New Zealand to celebrate throughout the week. There will be activities at volunteer centres, and Kiwis are also encouraged to ‘shout out’ to their local volunteers, either in person or via social media.”
Further information is available about the guidelines is available here, but no mention of the government’s spending on these initiatives can be found in the press statement.
Housing Minister Megan Woods, more admirably, has declared (in the last sentence of her statement) that a 36,800m2 land parcel was bought from the Christchurch City Council for $6.5 million (plus GST).
“This Land Programme purchase – the first in the South Island – will enable the delivery of a mix of housing. While the proportion of each type on the site is yet to be determined, the purchase enables Kāinga Ora to begin to explore options for developing the land and the mix of housing that could be incorporated on the site.”
Early estimates suggest the site could provide up to 90 homes in the well-connected suburb of Halswell.
Jan Tinetti’s statement drew attention to the annual Child Poverty Related Indicators report, released today.
She said she was heartened to see “meaningful decreases in critical statistics”, but she acknowledged “there is a lot of work ahead to really shift the dial. No child should be living in poverty”.
But what about something on the Government’s official website from Associate Justice Minister Deborah Russell?
Other than two speeches in March, she has been quiet (in terms of making official statements) since February 27.
As Minister of Statistics, she said then that the Government had confirmed the 2023 Census collection period would be extended in areas impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle.
She has posted no more news about the census since then.
There has been no great census-gathering triumph for the minister to bray about, perhaps.
So where can we find a statement in her name?
We ask, because a statement from the the Human Rights Commission says:
Following the statement this afternoon from Associate Justice Minister Deborah Russell, Te Kāhui Tika Tangata Human Rights Commission offers its utmost appreciation and gratitude to outgoing Kaihautu Whakawhanaungatanga-ā-iwi Race Relations Commissioner Meng Foon, for his services to Aotearoa New Zealand.
Foon today confirmed his intention to resign, following revelations in April that he and his family made donations to Labour MP Kiritapu Allan, including rent subsidy arrangements for her campaign office, in 2020, as well as a National Party candidate.
In addition, a company of which Foon is a director, MY Gold Limited, has been found to have received and still be receiving an income from the Ministry of Social Development for the provision of accommodation, including emergency housing.
This income has been received over several years, since 2019 and both before and after Foon became Race Relations Commissioner. It now amounts to a total of more than $2 million.
In 2021 the Commission launched a Housing Inquiry, which has been highly critical of the government’s emergency housing system, describing it as a breach of human rights. Foon did not declare any conflict of interest at this time, nor subsequently.
Foon has acknowledged his serious error of judgement in failing to adequately declare these activities, as required by the Crown Entities Act and Commission policies.
The statement says the Commission and Commissioners have an overriding constitutional role to hold governments to account without fear or favour.
It acknowledged “the extremely valuable and unique contribution Meng Foon has made to race relations in Aotearoa”.
Point of Order is a blog focused on politics and the economy run by veteran newspaper reporters Bob Edlin and Ian Templeton
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