Labour / NZ First Government

[dobby41]

Sgt Pepper, I was pilloried on these threads and in my personal life for raising these concerns when we first went into Lockdown. The flow on effects in both fiscal and health terms will be with us for decades to come. How many lives will be lost per year due to the health budget being underfunded because we are broke? Few people, in their State induced panic wanted to know.

I thought that the health budget had been increased - unlike under Nat where it was capped (at best) and the DHBs slowly went broke (and the buildings etc suffered).

[dibble]

How many lives will be lost per year due to the health budget being underfunded because we are broke? ...
Meanwhile our grandchildren will pay for the mess.

Hmmm. Probably a lot less lives than if National were in charge of the borders. Only time will tell. Meanwhile I am yet to find a graph that shows Clark/Cullen borrowed more than Key, in fact they all seem to show the opposite, this despite Key raising billions from energy assets. Lets be honest, this covid "mess" would have arisen whoever was in charge but it is simply disingenuous to assert only one party is capable of managing an economy.

[jonu]

Hmmm. Probably a lot less lives than if National were in charge of the borders. Only time will tell. Meanwhile I am yet to find a graph that shows Clark/Cullen borrowed more than Key, in fact they all seem to show the opposite, this despite Key raising billions from energy assets. Lets be honest, this covid "mess" would have arisen whoever was in charge but it is simply disingenuous to assert only one party is capable of managing an economy.

I'm not sure who has claimed Clark/Cullen borrowed more, I haven't. Key walked into the GFC and then had 3 major quakes to deal with.

Anyoldwho...my point about the health budget stands. In years to come Health Ministers of all persuasions will go cap in hand to Cabinet with a wishlist. At least part of that wishlist will go unfulfilled due to our massive debt. There is a cost in human lives. This is the trade off we have made with such a restrictive lockdown. It has not come without significant problems down the track. Most people still have blinkers on with regard to this.

[dobby41]

In years to come Health Ministers of all persuasions will go cap in hand to Cabinet with a wishlist. At least part of that wishlist will go unfulfilled due to our massive debt. There is a cost in human lives. This is the trade off we have made with such a restrictive lockdown. It has not come without significant problems down the track. Most people still have blinkers on with regard to this.

Hopefully then the DHBs will, at least, have buildings they can work in - buildings that were run down because of National Vote Health underfunding.

[Zaphod]

Hopefully then the DHBs will, at least, have buildings they can work in - buildings that were run down because of National Vote Health underfunding.

Which specific buildings aren't able to be worked in at the moment?

[artemis]

Hopefully then the DHBs will, at least, have buildings they can work in - buildings that were run down because of National Vote Health underfunding.

Good idea, but in the meantime staff at Middlemore Hospital could work in one of the many retail outlets the DHB spent its capital funding on. Possibly room in the organic food store for patients to wait their turn.

Point is DHBs make priority decisions on how to spend their taxpayer funding.

[tim23]

I'm not sure who has claimed Clark/Cullen borrowed more, I haven't. Key walked into the GFC and then had 3 major quakes to deal with.

Anyoldwho...my point about the health budget stands. In years to come Health Ministers of all persuasions will go cap in hand to Cabinet with a wishlist. At least part of that wishlist will go unfulfilled due to our massive debt. There is a cost in human lives. This is the trade off we have made with such a restrictive lockdown. It has not come without significant problems down the track. Most people still have blinkers on with regard to this.

So you'd rather be in Victoria? I'll take our handling of lockdown at this stage.

[jonu]

So you'd rather be in Victoria? I'll take our handling of lockdown at this stage.

I don't have enough knowledge of Victoria to compare.

And if there is no vaccine? What then?

[Balance]

So you'd rather be in Victoria? I'll take our handling of lockdown at this stage.

Rather be in Taiwan or Thailand, or WA, NSW or Queensland.

[Joshuatree]

Theres always a way out you know, of that corner you're stuck in