UNITY
Healthy People
Health is too important to be a political football. It’s time for a 10-year plan.
Your doctor and nurse have seen it all before. A new government announces a restructure, which stalls, and they hand the mess to the next government. Our healthcare professionals deserve more than these endless restructures and budget cuts. To look after us in GP clinics and emergency rooms, we need to look after them - no matter which government is in charge.
To back our healthcare workers, our Healthy People policy will deliver three pillars: a cross-party, 10-year Health Plan that lifts funding to 9% of GDP; a renewed focus on primary, community and preventative care; and tougher lobbying and political donation rules for industries that profit from illness.
We run health on a three-year cycle, even though it takes a decade to change.
THREE PILLARS FOR HEALTHY PEOPLE
Pillar 1
Plan and fund health for the next 10 years
Political flip-flopping won’t build the health system we need. That’s why Opportunity will work across the aisle to establish a 10-year Health Plan. This published, costed plan will detail the goals, milestones and investments Kiwis expect, and our health workers deserve. In that plan, we will advocate to increase and maintain health funding from the current 7.4% of GDP to 9% of GDP, and increase the share of funding for primary care providers like GP clinics.
Pillar 2
Prevent Kiwis from getting sick in the first place
Tobacco, alcohol and unhealthy food account for a quarter of all the healthy years New Zealanders lose to death and disability. We’ll restore the school lunch programme and a credible pathway towards a smokefree New Zealand, as well as use the latest evidence to inform prevention-focused public health policy.
Pillar 3
Protect health regulations from vested interests
In 2023, New Zealand ranked second in the world for protecting health policy from tobacco industry interference. By 2025, we ranked 53rd. Our Clean Up Politics policy isn’t just about protecting democracy - it’s about protecting our health too. The policy calls for a public lobbying register, cooling-off periods before Ministers take industry roles, and restrictions on the political influence of industries like tobacco.
We either pay for prevention today, or pay to treat sick Kiwis tomorrow. Opportunity will invest in health today.
Read our full policy paper
Download PDFFrequently Asked Questions
How will you establish a cross-party Health Plan?
Opportunity will use our position as a party that can work across the aisle to bring other parties together. We will be open with the public about who comes to the table and who doesn’t. We believe there is enough public support for this approach that parties will be incentivised to take part.
Is spending 9 per cent of GDP on public health affordable?
This represents a significant increase to the health budget.That is why we’ve proposed a decade-long path, not a step change, and it grows with the economy rather than against it.
Why expand primary care funding rather than hospitals or other services?
Investment in primary and public health helps keep people healthy and catch illness early. That reduces demand in other parts of the health system. We can save money without impacting the care that people receive.
What happens to the plans we already have?
The strategies and plans we currently have set out a vision but don’t provide details such as funding, workforce changes and investment in infrastructure. We need to make those plans meaningful by agreeing how to implement them.
What about disparities in health outcomes for Māori?
We will seek consensus on a durable structure for addressing Māori health - and whatever the structure, the money and the commissioning have to be stable across a decade.
That means measurable equity goals with public reporting, stable multi-year commissioning for kaupapa Māori and iwi-led providers, meaningful Māori participation in planning and oversight, and devolution where it demonstrably improves outcomes. Where community-led delivery works better, it should be funded properly and trusted to lead.
