Clark DavidMENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING COMMISSION BILLFirst ReadingHon Dr DAVID CLARK (Minister of Health): I move That the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Health Committee to consider the bill. At the appropriate time I intend to move that the bill be reported to the House by 30 March 2020.This Government is taking mental health seriously. The Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission Bill before you today establishes the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission an independent Crown entity that will contribute to better and more equitable mental health and wellbeing for people in New Zealand. The bill delivers on the election commitments made by all three parties of Government—Labour New Zealand First and the Greens—to re-establish a mental health commission. It also delivers on the coalition agreement between New Zealand First and Labour to re-establish the Mental Health Commission. This bill effectively reverses the decision of the previous Government to disestablish the former Mental Health Commission in 2012.He Ara Oranga the report of the Government inquiry into mental health and addiction identified widespread issues and low public confidence in mental health and addiction services and in the wider mental health and wellbeing system. He Ara Oranga set the tone for the system transformation that is required and laid down the challenge to the Government. This Government has responded. In Budget 2019 we announced a number of initiatives that support a transformed approach to mental health wellbeing and addiction in New Zealand. These include initiatives to prevent suicide and support people bereaved by suicide improving support for people experiencing mental distress and addiction and expanding access and choice of primary mental health and addiction supports among other initiatives.The commission will play a vital role in the system overhaul. Transforming the mental health and wellbeing system will take time and requires alignment across sectors and between Government and non-Government players. Improvements in mental health and wellbeing will be influenced by changes in Governments Government priorities and the focus of Government departments and other decision makers. An entity with an enduring role is needed to take a whole-of-system view and maintain long-term pressure on successive Governments and other decision makers that contribute to mental health and wellbeing. The bill establishes the commission to provide system-level oversight of mental health and wellbeing in New Zealand and to hold the Government of the day and other decision makers to account for their contribution to the mental health and wellbeing of people in New Zealand.The commission will assess how the system improves equity for Māori Pacific peoples disabled persons rainbow communities and other groups that experience poorer mental health and wellbeing outcomes. The commission will build on the roles of existing organisations that contribute to mental health and wellbeing by looking across the whole mental health and wellbeing system. This includes of course how the system promotes mental health and wellbeing how it builds resilience and prevents poor mental health and wellbeing including addiction and suicide and how it identifies and responds to people experiencing poor mental health and wellbeing.He Ara Oranga was clear that improving mental health and addiction outcomes including drug and other addiction issues means understanding and addressing wider social determinants of wellbeing with a more holistic emphasis on prevention of mental ill health and distress and indeed promotion of mental wellbeing. Acknowledging that there are many factors that contribute to people's mental health and wellbeing—and people rarely experience one factor in isolation—the commission's focus spans all Government and all non-Government contributors to mental health and wellbeing. In particular this includes the following sectors: health and disability social welfare housing education justice and workplace relations and safety. It encompasses the social determinants of mental health and wellbeing such as income employment poverty housing social attitudes and freedom from discrimination. It includes whether approaches to mental health and wellbeing are culturally appropriate.The bill sets out the commission's functions in three main groups. First the commission will assess and report publicly on the mental health and wellbeing of people in New Zealand. This includes publicly reporting on factors that impact on people's mental health and wellbeing including the wider determinants of mental health and wellbeing. The commission will assess and report publicly on the effectiveness efficiency and adequacy of approaches to mental health and wellbeing such as policies funding decisions and the priorities of the day. It will also assess and report publicly on mental health and addiction services a function currently undertaken by the Health and Disability Commissioner. These monitoring functions will ensure that the commission can hold the Government of the day and other decision makers to account for their contribution to the mental health and wellbeing of people in New Zealand.Second the commission will advocate for the collective interests of people who experience mental distress and/or addiction. This will include advocacy for groups of people who experience poorer mental health and wellbeing outcomes and inequity. But the commission's role is not just to monitor and advocate so third the commission will promote collaboration across entities that are involved in or contribute to mental health and wellbeing. This may involve encouraging good practice sharing information and working with stakeholders to identify unmet needs and service gaps.The bill requires that the commission must have particular regard to the experience of and outcomes for Māori when carrying out its functions. The bill also provides that the board must ensure that the Commission maintains systems and processes to ensure that it has the capacity and capability to uphold the Treaty of Waitangi and its principles and to engage with Māori and to understand perspectives of Māori.The bill gives the commission powers to help it effectively carry out its functions. The commission can publicly report on any matters concerning the mental health and wellbeing of people in New Zealand and make recommendations to any person including Ministers. The bill also gives the commission powers to obtain information from Government agencies and statutory Crown entities though this will not include personal information. The information-gathering power is critical for the commission to assess on approaches to mental health and wellbeing and the effectiveness efficiency and adequacy of these approaches.Together the functions and powers in the bill provide the commission with the levers required to build a picture of service and system performance. The functions and powers will enable the holding of decision makers to account and ultimately influence better and more equitable mental health and wellbeing and if it's doing its job will also increase public confidence in the mental health and wellbeing system and supports that are in place.The bill meets an important Government commitment to establish the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission. I want to thank our coalition partners New Zealand First for their role in making sure that was in the agreement that we had in the formation of Government. I want to thank all three parties contributing to the Government for their advocacy for such a commission when in Opposition. An independent Crown entity that will provide an enduring role to hold the current and future Governments to account is described in this bill. It will be a voice for the collective mental health and wellbeing of people in this country New Zealand. I commend this bill to the House.