April 27, 2020
COVID response sets scene for further reforms
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The chair of the Iwi Leaders’ pandemic response group says he would like to see the same commitment put into tackling COVID-19 put into tackling other persistent epidemics and social problems.
Mike Smith says it’s heartening how the whole country responded, and iwi leaders have endorsed the approach taken by the Government.
He says he’s told Ministers and officials the response shows epidemics like diabetes, heart disease and addiction can also be managed better.
"We’ve shown ourselves capable of moving fast and moving well and putting resource into coping with this health crisis. We can't let up the effort now. We've shown we can do it and we've got to tackle these other problems now, including housing, including poverty," he says.
Mike Smith says a similar effort needs to go into addressing climate change once COVID-19 is under control.
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