te Heuheu Georgina: Social Security (Long-term Residential Care) Amendment Bill — In Committee 
te Heuheu Georgina: Social Security (Long-term Residential Care) Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:622;Page:17351] 
Hon GEORGINA TE HEUHEU (National) 
: 
 We left this debate last night of course but I think it is worth reminding ourselves every time we stand—and my colleague who spoke previously did this—that in 1999 this Government promised to remove asset testing. This bill does not do that. What this bill does is lift the levels at which those requiring long-term care cannot be assessed on but we think it has lifted those levels far too high. Actual care in rest homes is only part of this whole scenario. One would have thought that after 6 years the Government would be a lot more intelligent about the way it reordered this whole area. Of course what we have is providers feeling that they cannot hack it any more. It will be worse even for those who think that they can. 
But there is an issue about the carers as well. As the Government puts more money into this area as provided for in the bill one has to ask about the carers. As we know there is only a certain amount of money to go around in any particular area. This is a Government that has previously said that it stands for carers but there is no increase in funding at all for carers. There is none for those who care for the elderly so that they can stay in their own homes. In 5 years there has been no increase in the earnings of carers. We all know just what a job a task a mission it is for those wonderful people in our communities who care-give to those of our senior citizens who remain at home. They do things like giving them a shower helping them with their dressings or medications and cooking them a meal. Carers do not get funded even for transport. 
A National Government would have increased the amount that people can keep before liabilities kick in. We think that is certainly justifiable but on the other hand this Government has basically chosen to put all its eggs in one basket. The total long-term care scenario has been neglected. This is a Government that has continually said it cares for all sectors of this industry. The Minister in the chair the Hon Ruth Dyson is sitting there with her chest puffed out and no doubt feeling very proud of herself for what has been delivered in the bill but there is a whole side of this issue that is not being taken care of or being addressed. 
Steve Chadwick 
: We’ll get there bit by bit. 
Hon GEORGINA TE HEUHEU 
: That is OK. Getting there bit by bit is one thing but the Government will find that the cost structure that has been built in will be so high plus a number of barriers and hoops are being put in place that increase the bureaucracy. It will be unmanageable. Getting there bit by bit is OK but the Government has to be sure that as it gets there bit by bit it is able to meet the bits by bit. 
How long will the bit be? It has taken 6 years for a Government that promised all sorts of things when it was in Opposition and it certainly is not delivering them in this bill. We will see what the senior citizens think. No doubt they will feel let down again by a Government that made out the previous National Government to be hard and uncaring. It turns out that this Labour Government is much the same in any event even if that were true of the previous Government which of course it was not. We can see that it is justifiable to increase the level of income that a person requiring long-term care can keep before the liabilities kick in. But we think that this legislation has gone too far to the detriment of other parts of the sector. 
The other point I want to address briefly is in Part 1 and Part 2. Clause 3(d) in Part 1 states that one of the purposes of the bill is to clarify the funder’s obligations to pay for contracted care services associated with long-term residential care. New Part 4 “Long-term residential care in hospital or rest home” in clause 4 provides a definition of what contracted care services means.