Time for changes to be made by MPs to proposed major health reform is running out as Parliament this week prepares to debate the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Bill in its committee stage.
For important legislation like this, the committee stage is a crucial opportunity for parts of the Bill to be scrutinised in close detail by MPs.
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Labour MP Michael Wood on the Transport and Infrastructure select committee. Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
The Bill revamps New Zealand's publicly-funded health system by establishing Health New Zealand and the Māori Health Authority, and formally abolishing the existing 21 District Health Boards across the country.
They will be replaced by what the Acting Leader of the House, Michael Wood, describes as a “unified service” aimed at ending “that postcode lottery that we experience in health at the moment”.
However, the National Party’s health spokesperson Shane Reti says the Government is setting Māori up to fail with the legislation which he claims includes no system for measuring outcomes.
Down to the fine print
“There have been a number of changes that have been suggested at the select committee stage, and that will come in to the house during the committee stage debate,” Wood explained.
“Members of the house can of course propose supplementary order papers which are effectively amendments to the legislation during the committee stage of the debate, and sometimes there end up being changes through that process to legislation.”
Whereas debate in the second reading of a bill tends to be at a much higher level and be about the principles of the legislation, at the committee stage it’s right down to brass tacks.
“At the committee stage we don’t have the Speaker in the House. We have the chair of the committee there, and they’re often quite rigorous in saying to members when we get up to speak, ‘get down to the detail, talk to us about what’s happening in this particular part’. And it’s a time to ask ministers questions as well.
“So it ends up being a bit of a back and forth, with members getting up, maybe making a point or two, and asking the minister to stand up and respond to a particular question ‘why have you got this particular word or sentence in the bill?’”
Meanwhile, much of Parliament business this week relates to the ongoing debate on the Budget, with over six hours of the debate time allocated to this yet to run.