New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Meritocratic DHB Selection) Amendment Bill

Purpose:

The purpose of this Act is to remove the election of members to District Health Boards in order to promote the meritocratic selection of officials.

1. Title

This Act is the New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Meritocratic DHB Selection) Amendment Act 2018.

2. Commencement

This Act comes into force on the day after the date on which it receives the Royal assent.

3. Principal Act

This Act amends the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000 (the principal Act).

4. Section 3 amended (Purpose)

(1) Repeal section 3(1)(c)(i).

5. Section 5 amended (Outline)

(1) Replace section 5(3)(a) with:

a) have boards that include representation of Maori:

6. Section 19 amended (Establishment of DHBs)

(1) Repeal section 19(3)(b).
(2) Repeal section 19(4).

7. Section 29 amended (Membership of boards)

(1) Replace section 29(1) with:

(1) The board of each DHB consists of 8 members appointed by the Minister under section 28(1)(a) of the Crown Entities Act 2004.

(2) Repeal section 29(2) and (3).

8. Section 31 amended (Replacement of board by commissioner)

(1) Repeal section 31(6).

9. Section 106 repealed (Transitional board members)

(1) Repeal section 106.

10. Schedule 2 amended (Membership of boards: Election and appointment of members, and effect of boundary changes on membership)

(1) Repeal section 2(a), (b) and (c).
(2) Repeal sections 3 to 14.
(3) Repeal section 16(1) and (3).
(4) Replace section 17(1) with:

(1) None of the following persons may be appointed as a member of a board, or appointed as a member of a board committee, of a DHB:
(a) a person described in section 30(2)(a) to (f) of the Crown Entities Act 2004:
(b) a person who has been removed as a member of a board for any reason specified in clause 9(c) or (e) of Schedule 3 in the past 3 years.

(5) Repeal section 17(2) and (3).
(6) Replace section 18(4) to (7) with:

(4) Throughout the relevant period specified in subclause (7), a united board consists of all the appointed members of each board of the abolished DHBs (even if the total number of those members exceeds 8).

(5) Throughout the relevant period specified in subclause (7), the members of an augmented board include the member or members assigned to it under subclause (3) (even if the total number of those members exceeds 8).

(6) The provisions of Schedule 3 continue to apply, with any necessary modifications, to every united board and to every augmented board.

(7) The relevant period referred to in subclause (4) and subclause (5) commences on the date that the Order in Council takes effect and ends when the Minister has determined that the reorganised DHB is fully functional.

11. Schedule 3 amended (Provisions applying to DHBs and their boards)

(1) Repeal section 3.
(2) Replace section 5(1) with:

(1) A board that has appointed to it a member or members not already familiar with the obligations and duties of a member of a board, Maori health issues, Treaty of Waitangi issues, or Maori groups or organisations in the district of the DHB concerned must fund and, to the extent practicable, ensure the member or members undertake and complete, training approved by the Minister relating to whichever of those matters the member or members are not familiar with.

(3) Repeal section 8(1), (3) and (4).
(4) Repeal section 9.
(5) Replace section 10 (1) with:

(1) The Minister must, by notice in the Gazette, appoint 1 member from board as chairperson of the board, and another as deputy chairperson of the board.

(6) Repeal section 26(c) and (d).

Submitted by the Minister of Health (/u/Fresh3001 ACT) on behalf of the Government.

The first reading of the bill can be found here.
The second reading of the bill can be found here.

Third reading debate will conclude at 8am, 18 June 2018.