Govt’s overhaul of our firearms laws was well signalled – but health workforce data might cause some surprises
An announcement that the government will overhaul New Zealand’s firearms laws was posted on the Beehive website after Point of Order last monitored what our ministers are doing.
But firearms aficionados could see this coming. If they couldn’t, they should not be licensed.
On 28 May, McKee announced the government would consult on regulation of shooting clubs and ranges.
And on June 1 she announced the government had begun a review of the Firearms Registry.
The government was concerned that the Registry is not tackling criminal firearms use while licensed firearm owners were complaining that the process of registering their firearms is difficult and demanding.
More surprising, perhaps, was news of an increase in health workforce numbers
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says new data shows encouraging growth in the health workforce, with a continued increase in the numbers of doctors, nurses and midwives joining Health New Zealand.
Just a day earlier the New Zealand Herald reported
And on June 1 she announced the government had begun a review of the Firearms Registry.
The government was concerned that the Registry is not tackling criminal firearms use while licensed firearm owners were complaining that the process of registering their firearms is difficult and demanding.
More surprising, perhaps, was news of an increase in health workforce numbers
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says new data shows encouraging growth in the health workforce, with a continued increase in the numbers of doctors, nurses and midwives joining Health New Zealand.
Just a day earlier the New Zealand Herald reported
Public sector cuts: Ministry of Health confirms final job cut tally of 123 roles, housing ministry cuts around one in five
The Ministry of Health had signed off on its final job cut amount, as change in the public sector starts to take shape.
The Public Service Association, which is consulted on the cuts at each agency, has confirmed 123 roles will be cut at MoH, in the final decisions announced today.
Latest from the Beehive
14 JUNE 2024
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Auckland King’s Counsel Gregory Peter Blanchard as a High Court Judge.
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says new data released today shows encouraging growth in the health workforce, with a continued increase in the numbers of doctors, nurses and midwives joining Health New Zealand.
Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee has today announced a comprehensive programme to reform New Zealand’s outdated and complicated firearms laws.
Shane Reti said:
“Health New Zealand’s latest workforce data for the quarter to March 2024 shows an increase across multiple categories, and we will continue our work to address the challenges we face in regard to our health workforce.
“There are now more nurses employed by hospitals than ever before, with 29,404 full time equivalent (FTE) nurses employed by Health NZ across the country. That’s an additional 1,198 compared to last quarter, and an overall increase of 2,900 over the last year.
“Health NZ has also seen significant increases in both its registered medical officers (RMOs) and senior medical officers (SMOs), with 4,950 RMO FTE now employed, an increase of 309 FTE over the last quarter, and 5,452 SMO FTE, an increase of 94 FTE over the last quarter.
“Midwifery also sees record numbers employed by Health NZ, with a total of 1,117 FTE employed across the districts, an increase of 76 FTE over the last quarter.”
Numbers of allied health workers, scientific and technical, and care and support workers have also increased during the quarter.
Speaking to the New Zealand Association of Medical Students as the numbers were released, Reti said while there was still much work to do, the trends were very encouraging.
The Government was fully committed to improving the frontline health services that New Zealanders rely on and has set ambitious targets for the health sector.
“Increasing our workforce will play a critical role in achieving them,” Dr Reti says.
“Our recent investment of $16.68 billion through Budget 2024 has ensured the funding is in place to support the retention of these essential frontline healthcare workers. It will also contribute to training more New Zealand doctors, with $22 million for 25 more medical school places each year, from 2025.”
He acknowledged there are still gaps, but
“… I am encouraged by the progress we’ve seen just this year.”
Nicole McKee said the Arms Act had been in place for over 40 years.
Piecemeal amendments – sometimes rushed – had has resulted in outdated and complicated requirements that unfairly target licenced firearms owners, often with no clear benefit to public safety she says.
“We need to find simple, workable solutions that deliver tangible safety outcomes for New Zealand communities.
“The reform programme has been sequenced in four overlapping phases. This approach balances the delivery of more immediate changes with investing time in robust analysis and consultation.”
Phase 4 will tackle the large task of rewriting the Act to modernise the law, so that it provides for greater public safety, reflects best regulatory practice, and is fit for purpose.
The first two phases of the firearms reform programme are already well underway:
- The Firearms Prohibition Orders Legislation Amendment Bill was introduced in the Government’s first 100 days and is currently before the Justice Committee. It aims to strengthen the role of firearms prohibition orders and provide greater powers to search gang members for firearms.
- A package of proposals for the simple and effective regulation of shooting clubs is out for consultation among stakeholders (Government to consult on regulation of shooting clubs and ranges | Beehive.govt.nz).
Phase 3 consists of two key components – the review of the Firearms Registry which was announced on 1 June 2024 (Government commences Firearms Registry review | Beehive.govt.nz) and transferring the Firearms Safety Authority from Police to another Government department.
Point of Order is a blog focused on politics and the economy run by veteran newspaper reporters Bob Edlin and Ian Templeton
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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