Barclay Todd: New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Southern DHB) Elections Bill — Second ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeBarclay Todd: New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Southern DHB) Elections Bill — Second Reading[Sitting date: 05 May 2016. Volume:713;Page:10853. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]TODD BARCLAY (National—Clutha-Southland): It is a privilege to speak in support of this bill. Before I start I want to acknowledge the Minister of Health Jonathan Coleman; the commissioner who has been appointedKathy Grant and her team; and the Health Committee for facilitating this bill through the select committee process.I think—just listening to all the contributions that have been made so far by the Labour Party the Green Party and New Zealand First—that if the biggest single issue in health in Southland and Otago is the quality of the food then it really shows how out of touch those parties are with their constituents down there. I have been meeting with constituents from across my electorate—from across Gore Balclutha Winton Queenstown Te Ānau and Lawrence—and the state of the food has not come up at all. What they are focused on are the optimistic opportunities that they see with the commissioner and her team coming into place to reform and reconfigure how health care is delivered across Otago and Southland.There are systemic financial issues that have been facing the district health board which were actually brought about by the poor mismanagement of the health portfolio under the Labour Government over a decade ago. That is why we are here. That is why the Minister of Health Dr Jonathan Coleman had to put in a commissioner to reform health care in Southland and Otago. We want faster more effective and more efficient patient care we want a more sustainable financial organisation and we want to reconfigure the systemic failures across the district health board and across the facilities.There are hundreds of highly effective highly passionate doctors nurses and care specialists across the district who are putting a lot of faith in the abilities of the commissioner and her team to be able to reform the health system in Otago and Southland. I know that the commissioner and her team are getting out and about. They are holding “walking in your shoes” sessions with staff and “walking in their shoes” sessions with members of the public and I am holding a number of constituent clinics as well.What is broadly coming through quite clearly is a sense of optimism in that this Government has decided to take a stance and make a change to reform how health care is delivered there.Clare Curran’s comments around the food are I think out of touch; so are Ria Bond’s. I do not think they are an accurate representation of the views of the people of Southland and Otago around health. I think it is actually quite misleading and it is not fair on our district. We have got an opportunity to be able to restructure and reform and I want to acknowledge the commissioners. I meet with them or talk to them regularly and they are listening to people. They are passionate about what they are doing and I think as they start forming a plan we will start to see more information coming through and that will be starting to be communicated with the community. Each step of the way there is community consultation so for the Greens to say that we need to do a complete about-face disband the commissioners and have local elections this year—it would just put at risk and would totally destroy all of the hard work and effort that have already gone into reforming the Southern District Health Board.In closing I just want to reiterate my support of this bill and the support of the Minister the commissioner and all the doctors nurses and specialists across the region who are doing their best to reform health care for the better for Otago and Southland.