Lotu-Iiga SamHon Peseta SAM LOTU-IIGA (Associate Minister of Health): It is a pleasure to take a call on this debate. We have heard members opposite present all sorts of phoney numbers around cuts and around spending yet we have not heard one member opposite talk about any bright ideas about how the health system can be improved. There was not one bright idea. There was a lot of moaning a lot of whining but not one bright idea. They have talked about how they tried to win votes with health spending and increasing spending yet we have not heard one member opposite talk about the quality of that spending. When you peel it all back the people of New Zealand are not interested in percentages and numbers. They are worried about their kid going to school and when that child gets sick they want to know whether they can go along to the local GP clinic and get quality health-care service. And that is what they get today in this country. That is what they get today in New Zealand. They know that their child when under 13 can get a quality service for free. That was not brought in under the Labour Government; that was brought in under this Government the National Government. If you want to talk numbers simple numbers the health budget was $12 billion when we took the Treasury benches and it is now at $16.1 billion. It is over $16 billion. That is $4 billion more. The people of New Zealand also want to know how we deal with our most vulnerable. We know that funding of $18 million goes into the Warm Up New Zealand: Healthy Homes initiative which gives vulnerable children a really good start in life. It reduces their exposure to preventable diseases respiratory conditions rheumatic fever and the like. We know that the rates of rheumatic fever have come down because this Government has been concerned about those children and their families and the communities that they live in. We have made that investment and you have seen the rates of rheumatic fever come down. We also know that there has been extra spending in the area of disability services which that member complained and moaned about. We know that there is $169 million over 4 years. We know that that money goes to the front line. That money goes to home and community service workers who deal with these issues on a day-to-day basis and who deal with the issues of people's health particularly people with disabilities but also our elderly—and the elderly support that is done in the home. Our Government is also focused on providing new models of care new ways that technology can improve how we improve the health of all New Zealanders. I was at a launch of a product last week where the elderly could do health checks in their home. They would not need to be transported to the local GP clinic or the local hospital. They could do these health checks at home. They could take their blood pressure and do various other things to improve their health. That is how technology and how new models of care are made under this Government and funded by this Government in order to improve the health of all New Zealanders. The members opposite also did not talk about how this Government has improved the quality of spending. I am responsible as Associate Minister of Health for tobacco control. We have done quite a bit this year already on tobacco control. We have raised taxes yet again. We know that 45000 to 50000 people die prematurely every year because of tobacco. I see Ria shaking her head.Ria Bond: Make it illegal then if you know that.Hon Peseta SAM LOTU-IIGA: I will not say we want it. We know that we are progressing the standardised tobacco packaging legislation. These are the things that improve the health of New Zealanders. They improve the health of New Zealanders. I believe that the New Zealand public out there know that. They know that we are committed to improving their well-being. As I said they are not interested in the percentages and the cuts. They are interested in how they can get a decent health-care service in their local hospitals and in their local GP clinics. In terms of surgeries we know that in 2008 the number of patients receiving elective surgeries was about 118000. That figure is now up at around 167000 people.Hon Dr Jonathan Coleman: That's great.Hon Peseta SAM LOTU-IIGA: That is great. The Minister says himself that it is great. It is about 50000 more patients per year receiving elective surgery—50000 extra patients per year receiving surgery improving their lives improving the well-being of themselves and their families and their communities.