Pae Ora Bill weakens Māori voice, erodes accountability

Te Tiratū Iwi Māori Partnership Board, representing over 121,000 Māori in the greater Waikato region, warns that the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Amendment Bill threatens to sideline Māori authority and strip Te Tiriti protections from New Zealand’s health system.
“This government talks about strengthening Māori voices, but these amendments sideline our authority. Iwi Māori Partnership Boards exist to ensure equity and accountability in health not just to provide advice when convenient. We need genuine power, not paper pathways,” said Te Tiratū Co-Chair Tipa Mahuta.
Drawing on the value of locality evidence from its Community Health Plan, Hauora Māori Priorities Summary, and Monitoring Reports on Te Whatu Ora, Te Tiratū believes weakening Section 30 of the Act reduces Māori decision-making, strip Te Tiriti protections, and deepen existing health inequities leading to poorer health outcomes for whānau.
“Our reports clearly show that iwi-led solutions improve access, outcomes, and efficiency across health services. From chronic disease management to cancer screening, the evidence demonstrates that local, Māori-led planning works. Yet the proposed reforms ignore this capability entirely.”
During last night’s debate, Te Pāti Māori MP Hana Maipi-Clark representing the Hauraki-Waikato Māori electorate warned that the Bill removes Māori influence and accountability from health governance.
“Iwi Māori Partnership Boards represent the community voice and Māori-led structures that ensure equity and accountability in our health system and this bill removes their influence.”
“Clause six removes the duty to maintain systems capable of understanding mātauranga Māori, kaupapa Māori services, and cultural safety and clause 33 strips equity and Te Tiriti expertise from public health advisory structures, including the Iwi Māori Partnership Boards. This is not tidying up legislation; it is dismantling accountability.”
Green MP Hūhana Lyndon added that IMPBs were originally designed to co-steer the system alongside Te Aka Whai Ora Māori Health Authority and Te Whatu Ora, but the amendments push them into the “back seat”:
While Labour argued “Why is the Government scared of local health services having to turn up to an iwi board and explain why they are not achieving outcomes for Māori? That is community accountability.”
Te Tiratū Iwi Māori Partnership Board point to the power of locally-led Māori responses during COVID-19 that were faster and more effective than centralised approaches.
“Our work shows the same principle applies across ongoing health inequities: whānau-led, evidence-driven governance delivers results,” Mahuta said.
Te Tiratū emphasises that Māori economic development depends on healthy, supported whānau. Empowered IMPBs drive workforce development, innovation, and local health infrastructure investment, aligning with Government economic goals.
“IMPBs play a critical role in ensuring Māori voices and mātauranga Māori shape health decision-making. Te Tiratū’s monitoring and priority reports provide actionable insights that improve outcomes and deliver stronger returns on taxpayer investment,” Mahuta said.
“The Crown’s duty to partner with iwi under Te Tiriti o Waitangi is non-negotiable. Reducing the role of the IMPBs risks repeating decades of systemic failure and wasted resources.”