Waikato University pressing on with med school plan
The University of Waikato is pressing ahead with its third medical school proposal, despite all indications it is now on life support.
The Otago Daily Times has obtained a document advertising the position of an "independent commissioning agent" for the project.
Interested parties have until the end of the month to submit applications, and a decision is due to made before July 4.
"It is important to note that this procurement exercise is being conducted in parallel to the approval of the detailed business case being considered by government for a proposed medical school," the document said.
"As such, there is no commitment that this contract will be awarded should the business case not be approved."
A firm preference is placed on those with previous experience within the sector.
"We are seeking respondents that have demonstrable experience in successfully delivering independent commissioning agent services on projects with a similar nature to ensure a seamless set-up and handover of the building to the university."
The role would last about two and a-half years, depending on how long the first stage took to complete.
It does not mention a salary band.
There was also a outlay plan for stage 1 of the "division of health" precinct, which would provide teaching and learning facilities for the proposed new medical school and support the division's existing programmes in nursing, midwifery and pharmacy.
"The division is in a strong growth phase and has more than 1000 equivalent fulltime students in these existing programmes," a Waikato University spokeswoman said.
Green MP Francisco Hernandez said there was a level of desperation to these documents.
"Aotearoa desperately needs more doctors and medical professionals, but unfortunately this government is just tinkering around the issue while at its core the problem gets worse.
"The Health Minister should do the right thing and kill off this zombie project once and for all rather than keeping it in limbo.
"Setting up a new medical school at a university with no track record of delivering medical graduates and which will require substantial levels of capital investment is a bad use of time and resources."
The Waikato Medical School proposal has proved controversial — the existing medical schools at Otago and Auckland Universities argue they can deliver more medical school students more cheaply and efficiently.
National campaigned on the third medical school at the 2023 election, but Act New Zealand made it part of its coalition agreement it would not like the project to go ahead without a detailed cost-benefit analysis.
When asked about progress on the project, and when the government would likely announce an outcome, Health Minister Simeon Brown reiterated the proposal remained under "active consideration".
This is despite the fact no extra money exists in the Budget for the project for this year.
Documentation from Treasury, the Tertiary Education Commission and Ministry of Education have all expressed concern about the cost of the project, the logistical hurdles in establishing it and the speed at which the government hoped to complete it.
An Otago University spokeswoman said ministers had been clear both before and after the Budget no final decisions had been taken on the proposal for a third medical school.
"Already this year we have taken 10 more domestic students, and we will take another 10 students next year.
"Otago is able to immediately increase our medical intake from 323 to 348 students, raising it to 450 from 2027.
"This increase in students would not require any new capital funding as we would largely reconfigure use of existing facilities and resources."
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An emotional Maipi-Clarke said she had been silent on the issue for a long time, the party's voices in haka having sent shockwaves around the world. She questioned whether that was why the MPs were being punished. "Since when did being proud of your culture make you racist?" "We will never be silenced, and we will never be lost," she said, calling the Treaty Principles bill was a "dishonourable vote". She had apologised to the Speaker and accepted the consequence laid down on the day, but refused to apologise. She listed other incidents in Parliament that resulted in no punishment. Maipi-Clarke called for the Treaty of Waitangi to be recognised in the Constitution Act, and for MPs to be required to honour it by law. "The pathway forward has never been so clear," she said. ACT's Nicole McKee said there were excuses being made for "bad behaviour", that The House was for making laws and having discussions, and "this is not about the haka, this is about process". 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Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi said there had been many instances of misinterpretations of the haka in The House and said it was unclear why they were being punished, "is it about the haka... is about the gun gestures?" "Not one committee member has explained to us where 21 days came from," he said. Waititi took aim at Peters over his comments targeting his hat and "scribbles" on his face. He said the haka was an elevation of indigenous voice and the proposed punishment was a "warning shot from the colonial state that cannot stomach" defiance. Waititi said that throughout history when Māori did not play ball, the "coloniser government" reached for extreme sanctions, ending with a plea to voters: "make this a one-term government, enrol, vote". He brought out a noose to represent Māori wrongfully put to death in the past, saying "interpretation is a feeling, it is not a fact ... you've traded a noose for legislation".
