On Friday 29 November 2024, the Tribunal released Hautupua: Te Aka Whai Ora (Maaori Health Authority) Priority Report, Part 1 in pre-publication format. The report was the result of a priority inquiry granted in May 2024 into claims concerning the Crown’s disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora – the Māori Health Authority. These claims were previously the subject of an urgent inquiry that was vacated when the Crown introduced the Pae Ora (Disestablishment of Māori Health Authority) Amendment Bill on 27 February. The panel for the inquiry was Judge Damian Stone (presiding), Professor Susy Frankel FRSNZ, Professor Tom Roa, Tania Simpson ONZM, and Linda Tuhiwai Smith CNZM.
Following the general election, in October 2023, the new coalition Government set to work implementing its commitment to disestablish Te Aka Whai Ora, generating urgent claims to this Tribunal. On 27 February 2024, the Crown introduced the Pae Ora (Disestablishment of Māori Health Authority) Amendment Bill (‘Disestablishment Bill’) removing the Tribunal’s jurisdiction to hear the claims. Under urgency, the Bill passed into law on 5 March 2024.
With its jurisdiction restored, the Tribunal inquired into claims from Māori about the disestablishment process and its impacts. After assessing the evidence presented from parties, the Tribunal found breaches of te Tiriti/the Treaty principles of tino rangatiratanga, good government, partnership – including the duties of consultation and acting reasonably and in good faith – active protection, and redress.
The Tribunal found that the policy process the Crown followed to disestablish Te Aka Whai Ora was a departure from conventional and responsible policymaking in several concerning ways. The Crown did not act in good faith when disestablishing Te Aka Whai Ora as it did not consult or engage with Māori, nor did it gather substantive advice from officials. Consequently, the Crown made the ill-informed decision that Te Aka Whai Ora was not required, despite knowledge of grave Māori health inequities. The Tribunal found that Māori did not agree with the Crown’s decisions but were denied the right to self-determine what is best for them and hauora Māori. Instead, the Crown implemented its own agenda – one that was based on political ideology, rather than evidence, and one that fell well short of a Tiriti/Treaty consistent process. It did so without following its own process for the development and implementation of legislative reform.
The Tribunal stated that Te Aka Whai Ora was an integral part of a system responsible for the equitable delivery of health care and services in Aotearoa New Zealand and gave effect to the Crown’s Tiriti/Treaty obligations. The Crown could have left Te Aka Whai Ora in place until it had a replacement, but instead it chose to disestablish it in haste. Te Aka Whai Ora was previously established by the Crown to provide redress for the long-standing failure by the Crown to reflect tino rangatiratanga in our health system. The Crown’s unilateral decision to remove Te Aka Whai Ora had effectively taken that redress away.
Overall, the Tribunal found that the Crown had prejudiced Māori in several ways:
- Māori have not been given the opportunity to engage as Tiriti/Treaty partners in the decision to disestablish Te Aka Whai Ora – the decision was made unilaterally by the Crown, without any Māori input.
- The Crown failed to conduct a robust policy process and did not follow its own regulatory impact analysis guidelines for developing robust policy when making the decision to disestablish Te Aka Whai Ora.
- Te Aka Whai Ora – a well-researched initiative that was co-designed with Māori and was widely supported by Maori – is no longer in place.
- Māori had not been informed of the Crown’s replacement for Te Aka Whai Ora, creating uncertainty in addressing longstanding and well-documented Māori health inequities.
To give effect to Treaty principles, the Tribunal recommended that the Crown:
- commit to revisiting the option of a stand-alone Māori health authority;
- consult extensively with Māori in the development of any alternative plans; and
- always undertakes proper regulatory impact analysis in matters that affect Māori health.
For all media inquiries, please email Paul Easton at the Ministry of Justice Media Team or call on 027 276 9810.
Hautupua: Te Aka Whai Ora (Maaori Health Authority) Priority Report, Part 1 — Pre-publication Version
Wai 2575 - The Health Services and Outcomes Kaupapa Inquiry
On Friday 29 November 2024, the Tribunal released Hautupua: Te Aka Whai Ora (Maaori Health Authority) Priority Report, Part 1 in pre-publication format. The report was the result of a priority inquiry granted in May 2024 into claims concerning the Crown’s disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora – the Māori Health Authority. These claims were previously the subject of an urgent inquiry that was vacated when the Crown introduced the Pae Ora (Disestablishment of Māori Health Authority) Amendment Bill on 27 February. The panel for the inquiry was Judge Damian Stone (presiding), Professor Susy Frankel FRSNZ, Professor Tom Roa, Tania Simpson ONZM, and Linda Tuhiwai Smith CNZM.
The Tribunal decided to inquire into and report on the priority claims in two parts: the first part concerns the disestablishment and its impacts only. The second part will focus on the Crown’s alternative plans for Māori health. Part 1 of the Te Aka Whai Ora (Māori Health Authority) priority inquiry was conducted on the papers with no in-person hearing.
The Tribunal found that the Crown breached the principles of tino rangatiratanga, kāwanatanga, good government, partnership, active protection, and redress. The Crown did not act in good faith when disestablishing Te Aka Whai Ora as it did not consult with Māori. Without consulting its Tiriti/Treaty partner and without substantive advice from officials, the Crown decided that Te Aka Whai Ora was not required, despite knowledge of grave Māori health inequities.
Māori did not agree with the Crown’s decisions but were denied the right to self-determine what is best for them and hauora Māori. Instead, the Crown implemented its own agenda – one based on political ideology, rather than evidence – without even following its own process for the development and implementation of legislative reform. As the establishment of Te Aka Whai Ora was a form of redress for the Crown’s long-standing failure to reflect tino rangatiratanga in the health system, its unilateral decision to remove effectively took that redress away. The Tribunal found that these Tiriti/Treaty breaches caused significant prejudice to Māori.
The Tribunal recommended that the Crown commit to revisiting the option of a stand-alone Māori health authority, consult extensively with Māori in the development of any alternative plans, and always undertake proper regulatory impact analysis in matters that affect Māori health.