September 18, 2015
Provider data captured in hostile contracts
Labour's social development spokesperson Carmel Sepuloni says National's short term funding of non-government organisations is undermining the sector.
A new Productivity Commission report says short term contracts increase costs and reduce service integration, innovation, investment, and the ability of providers to retain staff and premises.
Ms Sepuloni says Maori and Pacific organisations are disproportionately on annual funding reviews instead of longer term contracts, and those contracts are being offered in a hostile way, with providers told there is no guarantee of a repeat.
She says in the recent round the ministry was to renew contracts, forcing many providers into overdraft.
The contracts also included a new requirement that information be shared if the provider failed.
"So (they were) basically having to agree they would pass all the client files on to MSD or whichever the nominated replacement service would be. That's tough on organisations and it also has us questioning what about the privacy of the client, to have their privacy respected," Ms Sepuloni says.
She says providers are unwilling to speak up because they fear they will have their funding cut.
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