Salesa Jenny: New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Southern DHB) Elections Bill — Second ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeSalesa Jenny: New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Southern DHB) Elections Bill — Second Reading[Sitting date: 05 May 2016. Volume:713;Page:10852. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]JENNY SALESA (Labour—Manukau East): This bill proposes to exempt the Southern District Health Board from the 26 district health board elections and this is not a bill that should be passed without rigorous scrutiny because it suspends the democratic rights of the community for a whole electoral term. The usual rules supporting openness and transparency that would apply to decisions of the district health board do not apply to a commissioner. I have got to say even though the Labour Party actually supports this bill I would like to draw attention to a few points.First in the Ministry of Health’s briefing paper to the Health Committee on key aspects of the bill it made note of the proposals to extend the Southern District Health Board commissioner’s term in order to provide sufficient time to develop oversee and implement a financially sustainable plan for quality health services for the southern district. Well there is a short answer to that precariousness of the Southern District Health Board financial situation: give it sufficient money in order to enable it to run a decent health service. Figures that were released earlier this year showed that the Southern District Health Board has long been starved of essential funds. The Government must ensure adequate funding to ensure that the region’s health needs are not put at risk. It must develop a plan with genuine deliverables and sensible resourcing that is robust and available to the public.The pickle that the Southern District Health Board has found itself in is this Government’s responsibility. The Government’s failure to develop a credible path to financial stability over 7 years deserves condemnation. Going back to the Ministry of Health’s paper to the Health Committee I presume that “quality services” referred to in that paper indicates a commitment to high-quality services. I wonder whether this ambition for high-quality services extends to nourishing food to support patients’ recovery and their long-term health. In February of this year on this commissioner’s watch Compass Group won a 15-year contract to supply food to the Dunedin Hospital—a money-saving move presumably purporting to support the financial stability with many of the meals served to the patients at that hospital being prepared in Auckland and Tauranga frozen and then being trucked down to Dunedin and Invercargill reheated and then served to the patients. This includes meals that are served to the elderly folks on Meals on Wheels in the region; nourishing food that was previously prepared in-house by local workers and based on local ingredients is no more.Secondly the Health Committee expressed concerns in its report because Ngāi Tahu feels that its access to decision making has diminished under the new governance arrangements. This is an important issue and it was the subject of many submissions to the select committee. Although it may not be appropriate to insert particular directions in this bill the committee has strongly urged the commissioner to engage with Ngāi Tahu to ensure that Māori continue to contribute to the district health board decision-making and that the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi are indeed adhered to. I endorse this strong comment and urge the ongoing situation to be monitored to ensure that mana whenua rights are upheld.Thirdly some submitters on this bill felt that the commissioner’s decisions were being made behind closed doors and they sought to increase transparency of the commissioner’s activities and decisions. Thank you.