Reti ShaneDr SHANE RETI (Deputy Leader—National): I now know why we have been caught unprepared for the Delta outbreak. I now know why we have 30000 people on overdue waiting lists. I now know why we have nursing shortages and pay freezes and it is revealed in this Treasury document to Andrew Little released a few weeks ago that talks about this year's health budget. The Treasury document from Treasury to Andrew Little states that the priority for health funding in Budget 2021 is ensuring that the health and disability system has resources. I want to repeat that: the priority for health funding in 2021 is ensuring that the health and disability system—the reforms—have resources. That is why we have been unprepared and where we are today.The document goes on to say not to increase the minimal viable package for DHBs. It then goes on to say all manifesto commitments that are not highly time sensitive should be deferred in the future. That's where the 20 mobile dental clinics that were promised this year have gone.We don't have enough ICU specialists because this Government made health restructuring the funding priority. We are building negative pressure rooms in the middle of a pandemic because this Government made health restructuring the funding priority. There are not enough nurses because this Government made health restructuring the funding priority. There are 30000 people on overdue waiting lists because this Government made health restructuring the funding priority. People have been delayed their cancer treatment because this Government has made health restructuring the funding priority. There is no money for Pharmac cancer medicines because this Government has made health restructuring the funding priority. This Government has put all its money on a Hail Mary pass that is health restructuring and while they've been distracted we have caught coronavirus.There are actually two answers to why we're in the situation we are today. The first is that the Government didn't secure the border and let Delta in. The second is that they have made health restructuring the funding priority. They have squandered money.Squandered money—and now I want to talk about squandered time. Delta arrived in New Zealand in April this year—five months ago—and from then to now this Government has squandered the time and we were unprepared. They were too interested in cycle bridges and Mongrel Mob methamphetamine programmes and health restructuring to protect us from Delta. In June the Government's own independent Roche report into the Valentine's Day outbreak made several recommendations including these three: one immediately remove the plus" classification for close and casual contacts because they are too confusing—immediately. What has happened? Have they been removed? No. In fact another criterion has been added called "high risk". Immediately in June was what the recommendations were. Not carried out—fail. Second they were told to increase the number of people at the Auckland Regional Public Health Service by 25 fulltime-equivalents. I challenge the Government to say whether they have done this. Thirdly the Roche report said increased system capacity and resourcing for an outbreak. The time frame was three months. That three months has passed—clearly a fail.I want to move to vaccine targets. The Government won't set a vaccination target despite many other countries doing so. The Minister for COVID-19 Response tried to take us to task last week for suggesting a 70 percent minimum level might be suitable saying that we were permissioning the other 30 percent not to have their vaccines. That a fallacious argument. They are target deniers. I challenge everyone to go to the Ministry of Health web space right now and look up the flu vaccine and here's what you'll see: the goals of the 2021 influenza immunisation programme are to vaccinate 75 percent of the population aged 65 and over. That looks awfully like a target to me for another airborne infectious disease but it actually gets better. The goal is to improve influenza immunisation uptake for healthcare workers—vaccinate at least 80 percent of DHB healthcare workers. That looks awfully like a health target to me and yet the Government is saying we won't set targets for vaccines because the 70 percent you're suggesting permissions the other 30 percent. So I'd suggest to the Government I challenge the Minister and the Prime Minister: come down and say their target of 75 percent to vaccinate for flu those over 65—are they permissioning the other 25 percent not to have the flu vaccine? Are they permissioning the other 20 percent of healthcare workers not to have the flu vaccine? Of course not. That's a farcical argument and they are simply target deniers. They need to set a target where New Zealand can anticipate we might relax or better understand what the future looks like. Target deniers are what this Government is."