Latest news with #IngridLeary
Otago Daily Times
01-08-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Leary dignified as sun sets on her Bill — and gains unlikely fan
Ingrid Leary. Photo: RNZ Taieri Labour MP Ingrid Leary is proud of her Dutch heritage. On Wednesday she must have had a feeling akin to that which the Netherlands rugby team might have if it were ever to line up against the All Blacks ... knowing that you have to run out on the field but that you are going to get absolutely pummelled. At which point, you either fold up or fight your darndest — and Leary opted for the latter. Back on July 16, during the most recent Members' Day, the House managed to sneak in the first couple of speeches on Leary's Property Law (Sunset Clauses) Amendment Bill. This Bill, if passed (spoiler alert ... things did not go well for Leary) would have amended the Property Law Act so that house buyers would have to give their consent if vendors wanted to rescind their sale and purchase agreement under a sunset clause. Despite it being a well-intentioned and arguably sensible layer of added protection for people buying homes off the plans, it become all too apparent that all three governing parties were going to vote against it. But things were not all doom and gloom for Leary. As well as the sunset clauses Bill, Leary also has the Retirement Villages (Fairer Repayments) Amendment Bill in the Members' Bill ballot, which — if drawn and enacted — would require retirement villages to greatly accelerate the timeframe to repay residents or their families any money owed to them if the resident moved to higher care levels or died. This proposed law change is not a million miles away from what the government is eventually going to do in this space anyway ... and the reason why we know that the government is likely to enact a law like Leary's in the future is because last week someone leaked One News a recording of Tauranga National MP Sam Uffindell speaking at an unspecified time and place in a manner which seemed to endorse Leary's endeavours in this space. "Ingrid Leary ... has quite cunningly put forward a members' Bill which would address some of this. And she's savvy enough to have garnered up a lot of attention around retirement villages," Uffindell said. "And so that's in the pipeline as well. We need to arrest or take the key parts out of that [which] are workable and make sure we build that into something." Uffindell then revealed — over pizza and Pepsi Max — that Prime Minister Christopher Luxon had raised issues concerning retirement villages with a group of backbench MPs, including himself. He further offered some electoral spice to the mix by adding: "Importantly, it needs to go through the House before the end of this term, because if it hasn't, we're going to have a whole bunch of disgruntled people and retirement villages who all vote and all talk to each other about it. Who will go, 'oh, National hasn't actually delivered and Labour was going to do this'." Oh dear. And just to add hot sauce to an already piquant piece of audio, One News asked Uffindell, and the PM, about his backbencher's reckons the other Thursday, while Luxon was on a visit to Tauranga. Back to this Wednesday, when a somewhat embarrassed government made little effort to defend itself for not backing Leary's sunset clauses Bill, National sending out first-term backbenchers Rima Nakhle and Hamish Campbell to take up 10 minutes of our lives that no-one is ever getting back in speaking on the Bill. Nakhle did at least say that she understood that Leary was trying to protect consumers from bad-faith developers, before taking a wide tangent to extol the natural beauties of her Takanini electorate; but who knows what Campbell was on about in a, frankly, incoherent offering which had very little to do with Leary's Bill — or anything else. Labour, knowing it was beat, opted to make the most of it and have some fun with the government's discomfiture on the subject of Leary's other Members' Bill. "This Bill introduced by Ingrid Leary, who I want to actually acknowledge — she's doing tremendous work in this area," Labour Housing spokesman Kieran McAnulty extolled. "She's doing tremendous work in the area of retirement villages. Sam Uffindell is a fan. Sam Uffindell recognises that Ingrid Leary is doing tremendous work. "I think deep down, Sam Uffindell recognises that Ingrid Leary is doing tremendous work in the area of sunset causes. I have a suspicion that there are a few of them over there that deep down would actually quite like to support this Bill, but they've been whipped. They've been whipped and told that they cannot support this Bill." When the fall is all that's left it matters a great deal how one falls, and in her concluding speech Leary's buried her Bill with dignity. "It's been a real privilege to be able to have this reading on my Bill, and I want to acknowledge my late mother for her Leary luck in getting my Bill drawn. It's continuing even after her departure, so thanks very much, Mum," she said. "I can feel the sun setting on my sunset clauses Bill ... it's such a shame that the government members won't support it in its first reading, because if they had, I think they would find, actually, there would be many property developers who would support this Bill because they do not want to be tarnished by the reputation of a few bad apples. That's certainly been the experience in Australia, where their equivalent Bill was overwhelmingly supported ... That's, I'm sure, what would have happened here, but, sadly, we won't get that chance." Leary then put in a plug for her other Bill, stressing that yet again she was trying to protect the little guy or gal against the big players. "I note that this legislation has worked very well in Australia. I am going to let the sun set on it now — it's the last gasp — but don't worry, we've got the Retirement Villages (Fairer Repayments) Amendment Bill and you still have a chance to support that, National Party members." Well, at least Leary knows that she has one likely backer.
1News
25-07-2025
- Politics
- 1News
'People will be disgruntled' — leak of National MP talking up Labour policy
National MP Sam Uffindell told a meeting of retirees if the Government didn't take action on reforming retirement villages legislation people would be disgruntled. He was concerned that retirement village residents would believe National hadn't yet delivered and that Labour was doing something about the issue. Audio of the meeting was leaked to 1News, featuring Uffindell praising a private member's bill from Labour MP Ingrid Leary. If drawn out of the tin in Parliament and passed, the bill would require retirement villages to pay, within five days, 10% of what was owed to residents or their families if they moved to higher care levels or died — and the rest within two months. When asked about reforming the current legislation, Uffindell told the meeting in Mosgiel: "Ingrid Leary... has quite cunningly put forward a member's bill which would address some of this. And she's savvy enough to have garnered up a lot of attention around retirement villages. ADVERTISEMENT "And so that's in the pipeline as well. We need to arrest or take the key parts out of that [which] are workable and make sure we build that into something." The Tauranga MP went on to say that he knew voters were concerned. "But importantly, it needs to go through the House before the end of this term, because if it hasn't, we're going to have a whole bunch of disgruntled people and retirement villages who all vote and all talk to each other about it. Who will go, 'oh, National hasn't actually delivered and Labour was going to do this'." Uffindell also told the meeting that he raised the issue with the Prime Minister. "Maybe every three months or so… the Prime Minister will invite eight to 10 backbenchers up to his office. We sit around and have pizza and Pepsi Max. PM standard diet drinks – a lot of that stuff. Anyway. Went up there. Sat around and he asked us a bunch of questions about a number of different things... One of them he brought up was the Retirement Villages Act. And what we thought about that and [National MP] Tom Rutherford and myself, obviously Bay of Plenty heavy in retirement villages, we said, 'look, we need to do it this term. You know, this is a big issue for a lot of our folks'." He described Casey Costello, the Minister for Seniors and Tama Potaka, the Associate Minister of Housing as "very accessible", saying they agreed with him that they wanted to bring the reforms forward. When asked about his comments today, Uffindell said: "[The] Retirement Villages Act review is a really big concern. I go around to a lot of the retirement villages in Tauranga, and I know Tom does in the Bay of Plenty, and you hear a lot of the concern from those residents there. ADVERTISEMENT 'Ministers Potaka and Costello are looking at how we can improve the current arrangements. We're open to all good ideas out there, and New Zealanders would expect nothing less. National's determined to make sure that we get the legislation right for the retirement villages residents." Lose votes to Labour? Asked if he believed that National would lose votes to Labour if they didn't reform the Retirement Villages Act, Uffindell said: "Look, this is a big constituency out there, and they want this issue addressed, and they want us to get on, and that's why our ministers are getting out there and looking at ways that we can improve the Retirement Villages Act so it delivers. And I'm committed to doing my part to delivering for the residents in retirement villages here in Tauranga." Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said: "There was work underway under the previous government around retirement villages. What we said before the election is we'll continue that work and we are. Tama Potaka and also Casey Costello, as the relevant ministers, are leading that work and we'll have more to say about that in the coming months as well." He didn't directly answer the question about whether National would lose votes to Labour if they didn't reform the act. "We've been committed since before the election to continue the work around retirement villages and I'm proud of the work the ministers are doing,' he said. "They're very engaged on the issue. They've been talking a lot with people affected on all sides of the proposals and we'll have more to say about that shortly." Leary: 'Do it because it's the right thing to do' ADVERTISEMENT Responding to the leaked audio, Labour MP Ingrid Leary said: "It's great to hear that National Party MPs are supporting my bill, that's the right thing to do. But they should be supporting it because it's the right thing to do, not just because it's politically expedient. 'I think Christopher Luxon needs to show some leadership. We need a law that mandates fair repayments, nothing about incentivising because the only thing that will work in this case is actually requiring the operators to give the money back." She said the Prime Minister should listen to his backbenchers, acknowledging that Uffindell raised the matter in his office on level 9 of the Beehive. Leary said she believed there was a lot of public support for her bill. "I've spoken to numerous seniors and their families who are just really concerned and anxious about having access to their own money. They live with the uncertainty of not knowing when they'll get repaid, if they'll get repaid or if their families will be able to get the benefit of what is their own money,' she said. 'So I really want to see things move quickly. People have been waiting for decades for a change and currently there are people living in retirement villages who really want to see a change and are worried that they may not be around when the law change finally happens. We need to honour and respect them and make sure that we do the right thing by them."
Otago Daily Times
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Letters to Editor: Taieri electorate, growth, homelessness
Today's letters to the editor include focus on mental health staff, approaches to economic growth by government, and homelessness. Anderson pitch would be help, not hindrance When she fires shots Taieri MP Ingrid Leary should first check the background for potential damage. She labels "bizarre" the proposal to equitably relocate community mental staff (ODT 14.7.25) and unfortunately blows a hole in a big chunk of her electorate. Perhaps a shot in the foot? Advocating for continued disadvantage in Balclutha and surrounds, a significant part of her electorate, is not wise talk for the local MP. Clutha District has about seven community mental health staff HNZ currently. An equity distribution would make that 25 staff. For Clutha's population there should be 18 extra staff, Clutha's share of the available staff who are currently funded, but now in the wrong place. What Waitaki MP Miles Anderson proposes on her behalf is to the advantage of Clutha District. Why would Ms Leary seek to block 18 extra mental health staff in such an important chunk of her electorate? Ms Leary needs to appreciate that achieving equity takes more than fiery words. Sometimes it's simple sums. In Dunedin each staff member in this work group services a mere 443 people and in her Clutha District each staff member has to look after 2664 people. An outrageous maldistribution. (also in Waitaki it's one staff member for every 3000 people and in Central Otago Queenstown Lakes it's one staff to 2884 versus just one staff person to 443 in Dunedin). Such numbers are the realities, using the 2022 census, and numbers which Health New Zealand recently declined to update. The numbers will have moved a bit, but remain outrageous, and possibly are worse. I am happy to update Ingrid Leary further, noting I am in Central Otago, not "Queenstown-Centric". It's important that we do not pit towns in Otago against each other. Kerry Hand Bannockburn [Kerry Hand is a southern mental health services professional who operated the Miramare agency. Editor.] Clumsy but creditable Mayor Radich's Gaza letter is a somewhat clumsy attempt to express impartiality and avoid conflict, and as such is to be lauded. Seven councillors forced him into an impossible situation. International controversy is not the business of local governance and time/money spent in review or criticism of such topics is not part of the legitimate or moral concern in civic representation. This so-called "conscience" can be seen as antisemitism, Zionism, pacifism, humanism, xenophobia, bigotry, hypocrisy, fanaticism, ignorance or support for terrorism. Proximity to local elections suggests it is more likely to be lobbying or electioneering. International affairs are not within the closely circumscribed boundaries of the issues that are presented to city councillors. Viewpoints of intense debates on parochial topics should be unequivocally private, individual,- and not within the scope of civic business . Where there are strong feelings an approach to the PM, the Minister of Foreign Affairs or perhaps a local MP is much more likely to carry weight, provide relief and prevent neighbourly offence to those who do not support the same point of view. V. H. Markham Dunedin Community housing Until I read today's column by Councillor Marie Laufiso (Opinion ODT 10.7.25) I was not aware that Dunedin City Council had paused the building of new community housing in its nine-year plan. I would like to know where prospective mayoral and council candidates stand on this issue and if they feel the building of community housing should continue? G. Nicol Mosgiel Going for growth may not equal glittering gold Growth, Prime Minister Luxon is adamant, will replenish the government's coffers and ensure economic growth, with a special nod to 60 million tourists from China actively ready to visit. They will be planning to visit Queenstown, which has had around 150,000 visitors already this year. It was reported in the ODT that 400 Olympic-size swimming pools of waste water had been dispatched into Lake Wakatipu (down the Kawarau River and into Lake Dunstan) already this year. How many more Olympic-size swimming pools of crap will end up in Lake Dunstan with these tourists from China, plus other tourists from Australia and everywhere else, clogging up our infrastructure? Will the infrastructure cope with water for showers, toilet flushes etc or will tourists have to bathe in Lake Wakatipu and toilet in the bush? Will ratepayers be expected to pay the necessary extra infrastructure costs for tourists ? Tourists may bring dollars but what else will they bring that may clog up our hospitals and roads? Kathleen Moore Alexandra Understanding, not judgement In response to Paul Goldsmith's remarks about homelessness being a lifestyle choice, I want to share my personal experiences with a homeless friend named Ian, whom I met while studying and living in Auckland. Ian has spent much of his adult life living in tents in Auckland's Domain. Ian said that he did not like living within four walls and preferred the freedom of street living. Besides receiving a benefit, Ian has survived by scavenging through bins for food, food parcels and the occasional odd jobs. He makes it a point to avoid begging, regarding it as shameful. While he may regard this lifestyle as freedom, it has risks such as being exposed to the elements and criminals. Personally, I feel saddened that someone so friendly and resourceful has chosen to live outside of society. Ian has dyslexia and is deaf in one ear. These disabilities made it hard for him to succeed in school. His lack of formal education and difficult family circumstances were what drove him as a young man to live on the streets. He travelled through the country before settling down in Auckland. Mr Goldsmith was half-right when he said homelessness was a choice. While some may indeed see homelessness as a choice, this is because their world has been limited . Their choices are limited by a mixture of adverse circumstances and decisions. More understanding and less judgement is needed. Andrew Lim Shiel Hill [Abridged — length. Editor.] Kitty petting Lee Vandervis gets his re-election photo opportunity fondling grass on page 1, no less (ODT 12.7.25). What's next, incumbent councillors lining up to improve their chances by kissing babies and stroking kittens on camera? I dearly hope that Dunedin ratepayers are not so easily beguiled and, that in the coming elections, we all line up to vote for an end to profligacy and a focus on the absolute necessities. Pat Duffy Opoho
RNZ News
16-07-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
Plea to reopen consultation into plans to close Auckland mental health facility
There are plans to close mental health facility Rauaroha Segar House. Photo: Google Maps Street View A union representing public service workers is urging health officials to reopen consultation into proposals to close an Auckland mental health facility , citing concerns about predetermination. The PSA has sent a lawyer's letter to Health NZ Te Whatu Ora with the plea about Rauaroha Segar House, which offer a publicly funded intensive programme for people with long-standing or chronic mental health problems. Health NZ says it is working through feedback on the proposed closure, after staff put forward a plan to keep a service they and many patients say is unique. After the period seeking submissions closed, correspondence obtained by Labour spokesperson for mental health Ingrid Leary and reported by RNZ revealed officials had intended to vacate the Khyber Pass Road facility Segar House operates from in January, before a pre-Christmas move to extend the lease until June. It has since been extended again until 30 September. The correspondence makes no mention of possible alternative venues for the programme, but Health NZ said the building lease was not a factor in its decision making, and the proposal was about providing the best healthcare and value for money. The PSA's letter, from its solicitor Caroline Mayston to Health NZ co-director of mental health and addiction services in Te Toka Tumai, Stacy Silva Garay, last Friday said after learning of the lease information in the media the union had serious concerns about "predetermination of the change process". It said Health NZ breached its duty to provide all relevant information to employees and unions during the Segar House consultation process. "We request that consultation be reopened to allow affected employees to consider and respond to this additional information, as is their right," Mayston wrote. The union's concerns were not alleviated by Health NZ saying lease arrangements had nothing to do with the proposal to close Segar House. "This [the correspondence obtained by Leary] indicates to us that Te Whatu Ora was planning for the disestablishment of Rauaroha Segar House well prior to opening consultation with affected employees and had no intention of maintaining the service elsewhere. "We do not accept this information was not relevant to the change process." Rauaroha Segar House has offered a publicly funded intensive programme for people with long-standing or chronic mental health problems. Photo: 123RF RNZ asked Health NZ if it would allow staff and other parties to have a say on the new information, what its response was regarding concerns about predetermination, and when a decision on Segar House's future would be made. Health NZ northern regional acting deputy chief executive Mike Shepherd said officials were considering the information the PSA provided. "We have received a large volume of feedback on the change process for the facility and we have been carefully reviewing this feedback. "We will be in a position to make a decision shortly and this decision will be communicated to affected stakeholders as soon as possible." Leary said allowing the PSA's suggestion of reopening consultation seemed fair and logical. "Extending the time to ensure proper consultation is happening is the right thing to do. That's what I've said all along and that's what needs to happen." It made sense to give the staff idea of loosening the criteria for people to use the service a go, to see if it worked, she said. But, it looked like officials hadn't entered the process with an open mind as they scrambled to save money, Leary said. Health NZ has cited low referral numbers in its proposal to axe Segar House, although entry requirements were tightened about six years ago. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Otago Daily Times
13-07-2025
- Health
- Otago Daily Times
Leary slams govt over needle exchange decision
A Dunedin-based opposition MP has slammed the government for cutting funding for a world-leading needle exchange service for intravenous drug users. The Otago Daily Times has learned the Disc Trust, which has administered the needle-exchange programme since 1988, has lost its contract. The funding available for the service in the South Island has dropped in the latest round from $1.4 million to $1m. Labour MP for Taieri Ingrid Leary said the cut to the budget for these vital services was "another short-sighted approach by the current government". "This decision fails to recognise the significant value for money that needle exchange services provide. "Preventing diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C not only saves lives and improves quality of life, it also generates substantial long-term savings for taxpayers by averting the much more expensive costs associated with treating these conditions ... once again, it appears the South Island is not being prioritised." Ms Leary said the effectiveness of these services was largely built upon the long-standing and deep relationships providers had cultivated with their communities over many decades. "It will be exceptionally difficult for new providers to achieve the same level of reach and engagement without the benefit of these established relationships." The decision risked undermining the trust and accessibility fundamental to the success of needle-exchange programmes. Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora (HNZ) has said the funding was based on a new population model, but Ms Leary challenged that approach. "Funding these types of services purely on a population health basis is not necessarily the most logical approach, especially when specific communities within the broader population have demonstrably much higher needs." The decision-making process should have prioritised these specific needs rather than a broad population metric when formulating its approach, she said. "A needs-based assessment would likely have resulted in a different scoring matrix for the request for proposals [RFPs]. "I have raised a number of questions with the minister regarding this issue. There are widespread concerns across the motu that needle-exchange services are being centralised in an attempt to cut costs, and I am particularly worried about the adverse flow-on effects this will have on communities that are considered outposts of the primary provider. "The decisions regarding needle-exchange services in Dunedin are deeply problematic, reflecting a concerning trend in health funding and community engagement."
