Exposing the out of control deep state in NZ
The NZ version of the deep state appears to be the NZ Public Health Service. They regards themselves as having a divine right to opine on every issue of the day from capitalism to building design. They have been allowed to do this for far too long, and it is great to see the Minister pushing back.
My expectation is that Health NZ should focus on its core job of providing timely, quality healthcare for all, not distracting itself by advocating against fast food outlets, or telling councils they should ban community groups from fundraising with raffle tickets.
— Simeon Brown (@SimeonBrownMP) March 19, 2025
Simeon gives just a few examples of what the Public Health Service has been spending scare heath dollars on, instead of say childhood immunisations.
- Submitting against a fast food outlet going resource consent on the grounds of planetary health, landscape values, traffic and Te Tiriti
- opposed raffle tickets for local schools, Surf Life Saving, and Coastguard on the grounds it may encourage gambling habits
- suggested that coffee carts should be mandated to display signs urging customers to bring reusable cups
- advocating for the removal of sandwich boards from public spaces claiming they are “hazardous.”
- told Aucklanders that their ratepayers’ and taxpayers’ money should be prioritised towards walking and cycling infrastructure, and other projects that shift people “away from cars.”
Nelson Mayor Nick Smith also says on Facebook:
So they are advising NCC on road bypasses, on forest conversion, on draining playing fields and lowering bus fares. And in every case reflecting their personal opinion, not the policy of the elected Government.
All this is not just grossly inappropriate, but it comes at a cost. Every dollars spent by the Public Heath Service on their political lobbying is a dollar not being spent on activities such as vaccinations.
The proportion of non-immunised kids in NZ has exploded from 1 in 20 to 1 in 4. This is a public health disaster, At this level we lose herd immunity and kids gets whooping cough which last year was officially at epidemic levels. You can’t rule out diphtheria re-emerging either if we don’t lift vaccination rates.