Brown Peter: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Brown Peter: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:633;Page:5062] 
9.  
PETER BROWN (Deputy Leader—NZ First) 
 to the  
Minister of Health 
: Does he believe the decision not to test Zimbabweans for HIV before entering New Zealand despite Zimbabwe’s high HIV rate was in New Zealand’s best interests and if not does he stand by his reported comments that criticism about the decision was “probably fair”? 
Hon PETE HODGSON (Minister of Health) 
: 
 This Government does support HIV testing for long-term migrants and it was this Government that introduced mandatory testing a move—and I hope I am not being presumptuous—that I am sure New Zealand First supports and we are grateful for that support. 
Peter Brown 
: Does he accept that if New Zealand allows an extra 200 HIV-positive people to become residents it would increase the 1700 known residents living with HIV/AIDS in New Zealand by more than 10 percent and how does he expect the public to believe his assertions that the policy will decrease the prevalence of HIV in this country? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: Precisely because if those people are not identified if they are not given a diagnosis if they are not given support and if they are not given close medical attention the spread of HIV in New Zealand will quicken not slow down. 
H V Ross Robertson 
: What has been the reaction to the Government’s announcement that Zimbabweans who test positive for HIV will be allowed to stay in New Zealand? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: The decision has been welcomed by the New Zealand Medical Association the New Zealand AIDS Foundation the Human Rights Commission and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees amongst others. These endorsements are a sign of New Zealand’s maturity on the issue of HIV and a credit to the work of successive Governments in advocating a pragmatic approach to the management of the virus. 
Peter Brown 
: Is it possible that the prevalence of HIV/AIDS among Zimbabweans yet to apply for residency is higher than average given their reluctance to apply thus far so it is possible that the worst-case scenario is actually a mid-range figure? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: What the Government has done so far is process— 
Paula Bennett 
: What about asking senior citizens or the people who are bumped off waiting lists? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: If the member wants a question she should ask for it and seek it from the Speaker. The member may be aware there are 1300 Zimbabwean citizens resident in New Zealand under this special resident policy. Five hundred of those have already been processed if you will and that processing includes testing for HIV. The prevalence rates amongst those already tested is about 8 percent but we have said publicly that the prevalence rate for the remaining 800 people to be tested might be as high as 20 percent precisely because that is the prevalence rate back in the entire Zimbabwean population. 
Peter Brown 
: Is the Minister aware that these people were required to declare they were of both good health and good character when they arrived here and that people who knew they had HIV at that time are at best dishonest so how are these people able to pass the good character requirement when they have been dishonest in their initial declaration? 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: It is true that in the processing the Zimbabwean refugees will have to pass a good character test and a police check and so on. However the member if I might suggest gently might miss the point. The danger to the public health of New Zealanders is not so much from people who know they have HIV but from people who do not know they have HIV. 
Keith Locke 
: I seek leave to table this morning’s NewsRoom summary of the sort of disastrous Zimbabwe any people expelled would be returning to where the reports by the Solidarity Peace Trust state that almost nothing has been done to house 700000 people in Zimbabwe who lost their homes and livelihoods in the demolitions last year. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.