Latest news with #TeAkaWhaiOra
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Health
- RNZ News
Lady Tureiti Moxon slams lack of Maori health plan
Maori health leaders told the Waitangi Tribunal since Te Aka Whai Ora - the Maori Health Authority - was scrapped last year that it is clear the Crown have no plan to replace it and called on the Tribunal to recommend a new system designed by Maori called the "new whare". Inquiry claimant Lady Tureiti Moxon spoke to Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira. Tags: To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
RNZ News
4 days ago
- General
- RNZ News
Waitangi Tribunal hears new plan to improve Māori Health
Lady Tureiti Moxon. Photo: Supplied / Murdoch Ngahau Māori health leaders want the Waitangi Tribunal to recommend establishing a "new whare" to replace the short-lived, Te Aka Whai Ora, Māori Health Authortiy. Māori health stalwarts and inquiry claimants Lady Tureiti Moxon and Janice Kuka presented evidence to the Tribunal as part of its weeklong inquiry into what will replace the now Te Aka Whai Ora. On Wednesday, Deputy Director General of Health Māori John Whaanga presented evidence on behalf of the Crown but could not tell the Tribunal what would replace it. However, he defended the Ministry of Health's on-going work to improve Māori health and said that work would continue, irrespective of the Māori Health Authority's existence. Roimata Smail, who represents Lady Tureiti Moxon and Janice Kuka, told the Tribunal that based on the evidence submitted, the Crown had no plan to replace the Te Aka Whai Ora. Counsel also argued the ongoing claim that a single document, the Hauora Māori Strategy, could make a difference and be relevant as the alternative to Te Aka Whai Ora was indefensible and disrespectful. In their closing submission document given to the Tribunal, Smail said Māori health providers deliver excellent services despite limited support and that Māori want to control the funding of a system designed by and for Māori, the "new whare". "The claimants are saying 'we'll look after ourselves first, we're tired of propping up the Crown in trying to meet its Treaty obligations… we will be independent, and we will make sure that we're doing our job right, we will monitor.'" Smail told the Tribunal. The document outlines how the "new whare" would be completely designed and monitored by Māori, in contrast to Te Aka Whai Ora and the Iwi Māori Partnership Boards, which were designed by the Crown. It also outlines how the funds "hoarded" by the Crown to administer Māori health should be given to Māori.
RNZ News
4 days ago
- General
- RNZ News
Waitangi Tribunal hears new stratergy on improving Māori Health
Lady Tureiti Moxon. Photo: Supplied / Murdoch Ngahau Māori health leaders want the Waitangi Tribunal to recommend establishing a "new whare" to replace the short-lived, Te Aka Whai Ora, Māori Health Authortiy. Māori health stalwarts and inquiry claimants Lady Tureiti Moxon and Janice Kuka presented evidence to the Tribunal as part of its weeklong inquiry into what will replace the now Te Aka Whai Ora. On Wednesday, Deputy Director General of Health Māori John Whaanga presented evidence on behalf of the Crown but could not tell the Tribunal what would replace it. However, he defended the Ministry of Health's on-going work to improve Māori health and said that work would continue, irrespective of the Māori Health Authority's existence. Roimata Smail, who represents Lady Tureiti Moxon and Janice Kuka, told the Tribunal that based on the evidence submitted, the Crown had no plan to replace the Te Aka Whai Ora. Counsel also argued the ongoing claim that a single document, the Hauora Māori Strategy, could make a difference and be relevant as the alternative to Te Aka Whai Ora was indefensible and disrespectful. In their closing submission document given to the Tribunal, Smail said Māori health providers deliver excellent services despite limited support and that Māori want to control the funding of a system designed by and for Māori, the "new whare". "The claimants are saying 'we'll look after ourselves first, we're tired of propping up the Crown in trying to meet its Treaty obligations… we will be independent, and we will make sure that we're doing our job right, we will monitor.'" Smail told the Tribunal. The document outlines how the "new whare" would be completely designed and monitored by Māori, in contrast to Te Aka Whai Ora and the Iwi Māori Partnership Boards, which were designed by the Crown. It also outlines how the funds "hoarded" by the Crown to administer Māori health should be given to Māori.
RNZ News
5 days ago
- General
- RNZ News
Mainstream health system failing Māori, Waitangi Tribunal told
Deputy Director-General of Māori Health John Whaanga. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone The Waitangi Tribunal has been told the health system is failing Māori with one woman detailing how her son has been let down multiple times. Te Aka Whai Ora, the Māori Health Authority, was set up in 2022 but the government scrapped it last year and the Tribunal is scrutinising the decision as well as asking what the plan is now for improving Māori health. The second part of the Tribunal's inquiry into the disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora has been running since the start of the week. Maia Honetana from Ngāti Tu ki Tai Tokerau told the Tribunal on Monday multiple government agencies failed to help her son Akira, who suffers from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and ADHD. Honetana said instead of helping him they blamed her and her family for his condition, resulting in a poor education and a one-way ticket to prison. A dedicated Māori Health Authority when her son was young have made all the difference, she said, and she was furious the young agency was scrapped. "I find it really appalling that this government could even think about striking us out and putting us at the bottom, just because they want to. "Just because they somehow have this power to just do that, to scrap it whenever they feel like it." The mainstream health system had not worked for her whānau, Honetana said. "I know that I'm not alone, I'm one of many. "My case should be unique, it shouldn't just be one of many Māori that have suffered the consequences of not having a Māori-based health system or Māori Authority to basically look after us and take care of our needs." Deputy Director General of Health Māori John Whaanga provided evidence on behalf of the Crown and when asked by the Tribunal what exactly will replace Te Aka Whai Ora, defended the government's ongoing approach to improving Māori health. "Your point is that there is nothing new since the disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora. I'm responding by saying that I don't quite understand that question. "We continue to work on a stratergy for government on Māori health, which we would have been doing with Te Aka Whai Ora, the Māori Health Authority if they were still in place." Whaanga said. Whaanga and Crown lawyers could not give the exact details on what the government has planned for improving Māori Health, but evidence submitted to the Tribunal shows the role Iwi Māori Partnership Boards (IMPB) have in developing and actioning Māori health policy. Moe Milne from Ngāti Hine told the Tribunal the short-lived health authority made progress connecting small Maori providers with the government. "It wasn't 'happy families' with Te Aka Whau Ora but they went out of their way to not only come once for a consultation, they came several times to check, ring - we did several Zooms. "What we lost was the discussion about what should happen next, that's the biggest loss." Milne said. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
23-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Oranga Whenua, Oranga Tangata: Hāpai Te Hauora Responds To Budget 2025
Press Release – Hapai Te Hauora Finance Minister Nicola Willis promised no lolly scramble; but somehow, the sweet stuff still landed in boardrooms and business accounts, while the pantry stayed locked for whnau. Hāpai Te Hauora says Budget 2025 is not a Budget for whānau – it is a Budget for landlords, corporates, and cuts. Finance Minister Nicola Willis promised no lolly scramble; but somehow, the sweet stuff still landed in boardrooms and business accounts, while the pantry stayed locked for whānau. 'This Budget is a choice – and that choice is clear,' says Jacqui Harema, CEO of Hāpai Te Hauora. 'A choice to gut pay equity. A choice to ask rangatahi to prove their poverty. A choice to back the boardroom while gutting community support.' Businesses receive a 20% tax write-off on new assets. Meanwhile, whānau get 25-cent KiwiSaver contributions, tighter benefit rules, and income-tested child payments. 'A baby's best start now depends on a parent's payslip – that's not equity,' Harema says. The wealthy retain their capital gains. Yet rangatahi on Jobseeker now face new restrictions based on their parents' income. 'We're means-testing the vulnerable while letting privilege off the hook.' Health receives funding, but only just. Emergency departments remain overwhelmed. Nurses are still burning out. And while primary care sees a modest boost, there is no targeted investment in Māori health – and prevention is notably missing. 'If we want to reduce long-term costs and create better outcomes, we must fund prevention,' says Jason Alexander, COO of Hāpai. 'That means backing kaupapa Māori solutions before harm happens – not waiting until our people are in crisis.' Education receives $2.5 billion, but $614 million of that comes from scrapped initiatives. Programmes like Kāhui Ako are axed, and school lunches (Ka Ora, Ka Ako) are set to expire in 2026. 'You do not build brighter futures by cutting kai from classrooms,' says Harema. Tax cuts favour business, while low- to middle-income families receive just $14 more a fortnight under Working for Families tweaks – roughly the cost of a pack of nappies. This Budget did not prioritise Māori health, wellbeing, or equity. It disestablished Te Aka Whai Ora, clawed back unspent Māori housing funds, and continued the short-term funding cycle. Hāpai Te Hauora's Budget 2025 Wishlist included: Investment in Māori-led housing Protection of school lunch programmes Long-term contracts for Māori health services Increased income support and kaupapa Māori employment pathways Serious investment in prevention What we got instead were cuts, exclusions, and short-term gains. 'This is not the Budget for tamariki. Not for our mokopuna. Not for our taiao,' Harema says. 'Whānau deserve better.'
