Grey Power September 2019

NZ GREYPOWER MAGAZINE » SEPTEMBER 2019 49
From page 48
ment of all the monetary assistance
that was previously provided
to 55+ people to enable
them to continue any education
that they wish or need to pursue.
The Minister of Seniors
told Grey Power following the
launch of the new strategy for
our ageing population ‘Better
Later Life He Oranga Kaumatua’
that a detailed plan will be
produced, which we assume
will contain action on this issue.
3. List of activities for the next three
months:
The preparation of research to
provide a response to the government’s
announcement that the
unqualified partner policy will be
removed from 2020.
4. Policy Goals for 2019/2020
4.1 2018 Remit 25 = the development
of a strategy to help associations
engage with the 50-65
year-old members, as per the
Fifty Plus policy
4.2. Advocate for the provision of
training for Work and Income
case managers to address the
specific needs of older work
seekers – refer to Welfare Expert
Advisory Group recommendations
4.3 Provide advice to the lobby
team re the removal of the unqualified
partner policy - to
occur in conjunction with the
Superannuation and Taxation
and Social Services National
Advisory Groups
Jan Pentecost
Chair
HEALTH
I have received a number of inquiries
about the criteria used by District
Health Boards. Having got nowhere
with individual DHBs I contacted the
Ministry of Health. Suddenly the flood
gates opened and I had a teleconference
with two people involved in monitoring
elective surgery in DHBs.
What I did establish is that the criteria
for elective surgery is personal to
each DHB and there is no requirement
for them to make it public. However,
the criteria for cataract surgery has
been obtained under the Official Information
act and I can get access to
this. I was further advised that there
is a system that shows how many and
what surgeries are done by each DHB.
The offer was made for me to go and
spend an afternoon at the MOH to
see how this works. I will be seeking
permission at the Board meeting to go
and look at the system and get you an
update in my next health report.
Here in the Southern DHB area we
are still encountering major problems
with home help and in the course of
making inquiries with various groups
it has now been established that they
are still working under the conditions
which prevailed before the settlement.
I find it quite incredible that this is the
situation and wonder if it is the same
in other DHBs. I have been told our
contracts will be looked into next year
but that does nothing to alleviate the
current situation.
In closing can I remind you of the
recent memo re getting consumers
to stand for District Health Boards. I
would also ask that you look carefully
at what candidates are offering and if
elected hold them accountable.
Jo Millar
Chair
LAW & ORDER, EMERGEN-
CY MANAGEMENT – no report
received
LOCAL BODIES, HOUSING AND
TRANSPORT
Transport
Safety for all users remains the dominant
objective of our policy and advocacy.
While the issue for comment
of the Government’s Road Safety
Strategy will absorb a large part of
my time and effort over this and the
coming reporting period, we are still
working with both Movement and
Footpaths for Feet to oppose the
current decision by the NZTA which
allows electric scooters to operate
on the footpath .
I’m grateful to those associations
and members who have contacted me
with their concerns, and in particular
to Ken Carter for the information on
Hauraki District Council’s proactive
action to counter this by utilising their
by-laws. During this period we have
written to Ministers Genter, Sepuloni
and Twyford pointing out the NZTA
decision contravenes the UN Convention
on the rights of people with disabilities
and met with Minister Sepuloni
to seek her support.
Although the danger to vulnerable
pedestrians young and old, has grabbed
the headlines, we are also pointing out
in our advocacy that so called ‘dockless’
appliances pose a hazard on their
own when not in use to those with less
than perfect sight or limited mobility,
often being dropped carelessly across
the footpath.
While at first glance the Road Safety
Strategy consultation document ‘Road
to Zero’ aligns very well with our policies,
the devil will inevitably be in the
detail, and already there is knee jerk
push back from vested interests that
still see profit as more important than
human safety.
We particularly endorse the objective
of ‘creating a transport culture
that values and protects human
life’, and the acknowledgement that
roads and streets are far more than
a part of the transport system. That
they should ‘… be places where people
meet, shop and where children
play, rather than just a means of
moving people and freight between
destinations. Our environment is a
key determinant of public health, access,
and the ease of incorporating
physical activity into our day-to-day
lives’ and that this principle should be
central to how safety is considered on
different roads.
It is clear from the responses to the
members’ survey that two thirds of
members walk or run for pleasure in
addition to the walking necessary to
normal day-to-day activities, so their
ability to use the footpath without
fear of injury is a critical component
in maintain their physical and mental
health.
Local Government
Our advocacy in this area continues
to focus on the provision and maintenance
of key infrastructure, as well as
the options for funding and financing
these items. Although there is increasing
acknowledgement of the difficulty
for older people on fixed incomes
when faced with ever increasing rates
bills, this is unfortunately not matched
by practical new solutions.
Our policy here is on alleviation
of the rates burden by increasing
the amount of rates rebate, coupled
with an increase in the cut
off point for the maximum rebate
to more than the married couple
rate of NZS.
The good news is that an increasing
number of councils are looking to
increase their stock of pensioner and
social housing, often after protracted
and determined advocacy by local
GP associations. I hope to be able to
build up a portfolio of arguments and
strategies used by these associations
so that they can be shared around the
country.
Housing
An increasing number of commentators
and industry experts are promoting
the kind of solutions to the housing
crisis that our policies are based
on, and at long last the Government
seems to be turning its attention to a
rapid increase in the state rental stock.
However, analysis shows that both in
NZ and overseas, it is only government
funding and provision of infrastructure
as a strategic asset that gives
the kind of step change in provision
that will be necessary to re-establish
affordability both for rental and freehold
properties.
The introduction of the healthy
homes provisions for rental homes
goes a long way towards our objective
of a housing warrant of fitness, and we
will continue to advocate for a compulsory
extension to all properties at
a political level and with the Ministry
of Housing and Urban Development.
Climate Change Response (Zero
Carbon) Amendment Bill
As this Bill affects all parts of my
portfolio I prepared a submission on
behalf of the board.
The necessary changes to how we
see and use transport is self-evident.
However, it also has major implications
for local authorities and for
older people as individuals through
the costs of failure to address climate
change. With many of our members
living in the most vulnerable areas
especially in Christchurch, Dunedin,
Lower Hutt, Napier and Thames already
facing unaffordable or non-existent
insurance for their properties.
P. Matcham
Chair
RETIREMENT INCOME AND
TAXATION – no report received
SOCIAL SERVICES
Report on Expert Advisory
Group meeting re the Positive
Ageing Strategy
25 June 2019
The purpose of the group this time
was to a) evaluate the submissions
which were made on the draft document,
and b) go through the document
suggesting changes which would
improve it.
a) 220 submissions were made, by
groups and individuals. Many of
the comments belong to the Action
Plan, which will follow once the
text of the Strategy has been finally
approved, rather than the Strategy
itself. Others were evaluated and
either included or rejected as being
already covered by the document.
b) The draft document was examined
section by section, with members
suggesting alterations to text, diagrams
and general information.
Generally, the new format and presentation
was found to be much improved
on the 10-year-old version.
Various refinements were proposed
as we went through the Strategy and
these are to be sent out to members
for approval before the document
is presented to the Minister for
her endorsement.
c) It is expected that, following its acceptance
by Cabinet, the Strategy
will be launched in early November.
At that point, the Action Plan
and supporting documents will be
produced. The group recommended
that there be a follow-up and
review of the Strategy at five-yearly
intervals.
K. de Lacy
Chair
TELECOMMUNICATIONS –
nothing new to report