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Manurewa MP Lousia Wall says a critical report on Whanau Ora confirms Government ministers have mishandled an important initiative.
The Audit Office identified problems with the way some government agencies had responded to the idea of unified service delivery based around family well-being rather than just individual need, but it praised the innovation it was offering the public service.
Ms Wall says the government needs to be clearer about what it hopes to achieve through Whanau Ora so its success or failure can be properly measured.
She says while it is widely seen as a problem in the Maori development portfolio, the Whanau Ora Partnership Group also includes the ministers of Finance, Education, Health, Social Development and Economic Development.
"The criticism in the auditor general’s report is actually a criticism of this Whanau Ora Partnership Group so it’s a governance issue and the governors of this programme are those six ministers and she notes that in November last year they invited six iwi members to join them. From my perspective that is a recognition they were failing," Ms Wall says.
She says people in Whanau Ora who are navigating clients through complex public systems are doing a fantastic job.
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