O'Connor Simon: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeO'Connor Simon: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 26 August 2015. Volume:708;Page:6155. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]3.SIMON O’CONNOR (National—Tāmaki) to the Minister of Health: What reports has he received on New Zealand’s health system?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN (Minister of Health): Many reports have crossed my desk recently on the improved performance of our health system under National whether it is the 50000 extra elective surgery operations we are doing every year or the 400000 extra kids who now have free access to GP visits. I have received another upbeat report published in the Southland Times yesterday which says: “overall the health system [is] working well … ‘We do have a good health system’ ”. Those are the words of Mrs A King of Rongotai and I want to thank her for her positive endorsement of the Government’s performance in health.Hon Annette King: In light of that answer—[Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! I am just waiting for a bit of quiet. I have called the Hon Annette King.Hon Annette King: Thank you Mr Speaker. In light of that answer would the Minister like to complete the quote that I made which said that the health system is “creaking around the edges” and does demand some action?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: Actually that is not what I believe the member said but I thank her for her positive endorsement. It is great to have her on board with “team health New Zealand”—thank you very much.Simon O’Connor: What other reports has he seen supporting Mrs King’s view that we “have a good health system”?Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: Yesterday I released the latest quarterly report on the health targets. They showed that the primary care target to help smokers to quit was met for the first time with a national result of 95 percent. In addition all district health boards met the improved access to elective surgery target and delivered 10614 more elective surgical discharges than planned. The Government is committed to delivering year-on-year increases in elective surgery. These results are a fantastic achievement that is improving patients’ experience of the health system.Hon Annette King: Did he also know that at the public meeting where there was standing room only I also said that the health budget is missing $1.7 billion since this Government was elected 7 years ago and that there are many people in Southland-Otago dying of bowel cancer because he will not roll out a bowel cancer screening programme to the southern part of New Zealand—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Bring the question to an end.Hon Annette King: —where the highest death rate and incidence are? Did he also hear—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Bring the question to an end.Hon Annette King: Oh I have got plenty more.Mr SPEAKER: No. The member has had her opportunity.Hon Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN: Of course we all know that it is completely untrue that there is $1.7 billion missing from the health budget. We actually put in $400 million more last year. I think it is time Mrs King became more positive inside the House because she has actually been quite positive when she goes around and speaks to people around the country about our record.Chris Hipkins: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I wonder whether in due course you could give some further consideration to a situation where the Government used a Government question in order to attack an Opposition member of Parliament which of course—Hon Members: Aw!Chris Hipkins: —hang on hear the point of order; I think you should hear the point of order—there are Speakers’ rulings against. There are two ways that the Opposition can approach that. One is that we can raise points of order with you about it. The other is that we can join in and have members asking supplementary questions on that but I think that involves a little bit of give and take from you as Speaker as well in allowing the Opposition effectively a chance to respond in the form of a question without being cut off.Hon Simon Bridges: It was hardly right to say that the question was attacking when indeed it was praising the Hon Annette King for her positive comments about the New Zealand health system.Mr SPEAKER: No I do not need any assistance from the member. This is question time. The principal purpose is to hold the Government to account but inevitably there will be political debate around questions and answers. That has happened for as long as I have been in this House and it will have happened for as long as Mr Hipkins has been in the House. In that particular exchange I did note there was one supplementary question from the Government. There were two very good supplementary questions from the Hon Annette King who certainly had her chance to respond to the answers that were given.