Pettis Jill: Health (Screening Programmes) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Pettis Jill: Health (Screening Programmes) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:606;Page:3507] 
JILL PETTIS (NZ Labour—Whanganui) 
: 
 I am pleased to speak to this very important bill. I know we say that all bills are important—of course they are otherwise they would never ever get to the House. But this bill is important because the issue it addresses has had a very long emotional history in many respects. I am pleased that we are at this stage in the bill’s progress and I certainly look forward to it progressing through the House as quickly as possible.  
Some of us may ask why this bill is needed but I think most people in New Zealand will know the reason for that themselves. The issue of cervical cancer screening has had a huge public airing. I remember when the announcement was made about the decision at the Gisborne inquiry. I received a speeding ticket that day because I was so preoccupied with listening to the decision that we had been involved in for so many months that my mind wandered and I was not aware that I was doing about 10 kilometres an hour faster than I should have been. That announcement is one that will always remain in my mind for a variety of reasons but particularly because it was a step toward the closure of that issue which then gave rise to moving on.  
In New Zealand a high number of women develop cancer of the cervix unfortunately sometimes because of a lack of attention to our own health needs. This is one of the most preventable forms of all cancers but I think humanity still maintains that 10-foot high and bulletproof attitude and often we do not take as much care of our own health as we should. I am as guilty of that as anybody else. About 90 percent of the cases of the most common form of cervical cancer are preventable if detected at an early stage and treated appropriately.  
The national cervical screening programme was established in 1990-91 to organise cervical screening with the aim primarily of reducing the number of women who develop cervical cancer. It is pleasing to note that in the 10 years from 1987 to 1997 cervical cancer rates dropped by 39 percent and over the same period the death rate for cervical cancer dropped by 44 percent. We have heard the comment earlier today in question time about the figure of 1 percent being acceptable internationally. Of course we all want zero percent in everything if at all possible. While that is an extremely long-term and perhaps naive goal this programme certainly is already having a huge positive benefit—and long may that continue. I am convinced that women are far more aware now of that good old adage “prevention is better than cure” with regard to cervical screening. That has been brought about to a considerable degree by this programme and the very proactive and well-thought-through publicity that surrounds it.  
We acknowledge willingly that further steps are necessary in order to ensure the more successful operation of the programme and I am confident that that evolutionary process will occur with good positive gains being made. I think in the end that while this bill has had a considerable amount of time spent on it it has not been progressed as quickly as we would have liked. We have had the great New Zealand shut-down over January and I am pleased that this is one of the very first bills in front of the House this year. I am sure we are unanimous in wanting its rapid progress through the House.