Ministerial Statements — Armed Forces’ Public Service—Nurses Used During Industrial Dispute

I wish to make a ministerial statement under Standing Order 356 in relation to the use of the armed forces to perform a public service in connection with an industrial dispute. I’m required under section 9 of the Defence Act 1990 to inform the House that this authority has been given and the reasons for giving it, and to table it at the House at the first opportunity.

Following a request from the Minister of Health for New Zealand Defence Force assistance in the event of industrial action by nurses, I approved under section 9 of the Defence Act 1990 the provision of a small detachment of up to 20 regular force nurses able to perform general nursing duties if required in accordance with the priorities as provided by the Ministry of Health. This modest provision was made to assist the overall effort by the Ministry of Health and district health boards to maintain life-preserving services and continuity of care at locations across New Zealand in the event of industrial action on 12 July 2018. Written approval for this action was provided by me to the Chief of Defence Force on 10 July, and I will table a copy of this letter today.

On 12 July, 17 New Zealand Defence Force nurses undertook nursing duties at five Ministry of Health priority locations across New Zealand, to support the provision of life-preserving services agreed to between the district health boards and the New Zealand Nurses Organisation. One nurse in Taupō, two nurses in Palmerston North, two nurses in Invercargill, six nurses in Canterbury, and six nurses in the Waikato. Fifteen of the nurses worked in emergency departments while two of the nurses worked in Waikato intensive care. I commend the Defence Force for being able to move quickly and provide high-quality support.

This effort reinforces the wide range of other tasks the Defence Force performs for our communities and underlines their dedication and professionalism. Thank you, Mr Speaker.

I want to begin by expressing my party’s admiration for all our Defence Force personnel, both regular and reservists, who serve our country with distinction and have done for generations—often in very dangerous places. And our medical staff have done so as well, in places as far flung as the former Yugoslavia, Somalia, East Timor, and Afghanistan, and they have provided excellent care, both to their own forces and to the local community. I suggest it wasn’t the expectation of those fine men and women of the Defence Force medical teams that they be delivering life-preserving services in New Zealand, in our hospitals. Indeed, the stated goal of the New Zealand Defence Health is to be “tasked with ‘maintaining, improving, and restoring the health of the defence force’ in order to maintain the operational effectiveness of the [New Zealand Defence Force]. … The NZDF medical officer will be expected to provide this care to NZDF personnel, as required on land, at sea, or in the air.”

So while the Minister of Defence has provided us with a statement on the deployment under section 9 of the Defence Act as he is required, quite frankly, this revelation that we have only just found out about this morning raises far more questions than the Minister has answered. Indeed, this is unprecedented. Only three times—three times—in the last 70 years has section 9 or its predecessor Act been invoked: firstly, the 1951 waterfront workers’ strike; in 1993, and in 2001—the second and third of those were in corrections facilities following industrial action.

It would never have been envisaged that Defence Force medical personnel be deployed to our own hospitals to provide life-preserving services to New Zealanders in peacetime. And the Minister of Health assured us that everything was being done to make arrangements, so I would ask this—this is the fundamental question: what happened in the breakdown of the relationship between the Government and the New Zealand Nurses Organisation that life-preserving services from the 27,000 nurses in this country could not have been arranged, that led to the need for the Government to invoke section 9?

I wonder if the Minister of Defence actually scrutinised what this request really meant for Defence Force personnel. It just shows quite how ham-fisted the industrial relations management of the nurses’ industrial dispute has become. When we’re calling in the army to man our hospitals, to staff our hospitals, during an industrial dispute, it behoves this Government to settle this action and, actually, to be a little bit more upfront with New Zealanders about what they’re doing and when. It has been nearly a fortnight since that strike and we only find out today that we had Defence Force personnel propping up our health services. And the dispute remains unsettled. I’m sure the Minister of Defence is very, very concerned to avoid having to take this extraordinary action again, and it falls to the Government and it falls to the Minister of Health to sort this thing out quickly.

I seek leave to table a document evidencing when the armed forces employed personnel in an industrial dispute—namely, National’s Warren Cooper in 1993, in the prison system strike.

💬 SPEAKER: What is the document?

It’s the Hansard.

Are there any further comments to be made?

Can I echo the comments of the Minister of Defence and thank the Defence Force for supplying 17 nurses to work in district health boards (DHBs) during the nurses’ strike. I also want to thank the individual Defence Force nurses who undertook these duties. The Defence Force also supplied, of course, medical support during the Christchurch—

💬 SPEAKER: Can the member talk into the mike, and can the people who are looking at them make sure that they’re turned on, please?

I apologise, Mr Speaker; I have a quiet voice. I’ll start again.

Can I please echo the comments of the Minister of Defence and thank the Defence Force for supplying 17 nurses to work in DHBs during the nurses’ strike. I also want to thank the individual Defence Force nurses who undertook these duties. Of course, the Defence Force was also involved in the Christchurch earthquake, where they supplied medical personnel to help out with that effort. We are always grateful for their support.

As this was the first industrial action by nurses in a generation, it was prudent to do all that we could to ensure our hospitals had enough nurses in place for the duration of the strike. It was for that reason that, as Minister of Health, I requested support from the Defence Force. Their contribution was part of a much larger effort to ensure patient safety remained a priority during 24 hours of strike action.

With that in mind, I’d also like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the constructive way the New Zealand Nurses Organisation and district health boards worked together to make sure life-preserving services—

💬 SPEAKER: Order! It’s a narrow debate.

It’s a reflection on the professionalism and dedication of all involved that despite the disruption caused by industrial action, our hospitals continued to provide quality emergency care. It’s not my place to comment in detail at this stage on the ongoing process, though I remain hopeful a deal can be found and we will not need to call on the Defence Force for further support. Ultimately, we all want our hospitals to be sustainable, safe working environments. That is certainly what this Government is committed to and it is nothing less than our nurses and the patients they care for deserve.