Turia Tariana: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Turia Tariana: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:627;Page:22036] 
4.  
TARIANA TURIA (Leader—Maori Party) 
 to the  
Minister of Health 
: At what point will she put in place a fully funded public health strategy focusing on diabetes prevention and education? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR (Acting Minister of Health) 
: 
 When Labour came into Government it launched the New Zealand Health Strategy with diabetes as a key priority. Last year the ministry launched the Healthy Eating - Healthy Action strategy and then the implementation plan with diabetes as one of its main targets. Healthy Eating - Healthy Action aims to improve nutrition increase physical activity and reduce obesity and thus reduce the incidence of diabetes. In the past year Healthy Eating - Healthy Action implementation has received $12 million of Ministry of Health funding in addition to district health board initiatives such as Let’s Beat Diabetes for which the Counties Manukau District Health Board has allocated $10 million over 5 years. 
Tariana Turia 
: How does the Minister intend to respond to the report from Associate Professor Robert Scragg entitled “Preventing diabetes—time is running out” or does she also suffer from the same degree of apathy and indifference to the diabetes epidemic that Professor Scragg describes as occurring amongst influential circles in the Ministry of Health and district health boards? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: I absolutely refute those ridiculous claims. This Government has made diabetes one of its main priority areas in all areas of health focus. We are spending millions of dollars and we will gain some momentum when that member helps to advocate for Healthy Eating - Healthy Action and for better eating habits throughout this country. 
Steve Chadwick 
: What priority does the Government place on diabetes prevention and education? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: Work is currently being done with both Diabetes New Zealand and the National Heart Foundation on a coordinated approach but we are not waiting for that. Initiatives are in place as I said before such as the free “Get Checked” Diabetes Aotearoa programme for all New Zealanders and the Counties Manukau District Health Board’s Let’s Beat Diabetes campaign. Although we accept that diabetes is reaching epidemic proportions so too is the meningococcal B epidemic. How does that member reconcile her position of calling for diabetes prevention but not supporting preventive vaccinations for meningococcal B when both diseases are devastating for Maori health? 
Tariana Turia 
: How has the Minister responded to the PricewaterhouseCoopers’ economic report  
Type 2 Diabetes: Managing for Better Health Outcomes 
 and in particular its projections that the total cost of diabetes can be reduced over 20 years if existing services are increased as soon as possible? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: If the member would listen she would know that that is exactly what we are doing. We are spending millions of dollars to increase services to promote healthy eating and healthy action. We too accept the PricewaterhouseCoopers report that says that with that expenditure we will reduce the cost of diabetes over time. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I seek leave to table the various charts from the Ministry of Health with regard to meningococcal disease to point out categorically that the Minister’s claim of there being an epidemic is absurd and not true. 
Document not tabled.