Simeon Brown Cagey On Privatisation Meeting with Serco
Simeon Brown Cagey On Privatisation Meeting with Serco
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- Date published:
11:07 am, October 1st, 2025 - 4 comments
Categories: health, Privatisation, Shane Reti, simeon brown -
Tags: serco
The future of healthcare is bleak
Last year, National funded health to the lowest per capita level in a century. We’ve also seen a sustained push towards “ruthlessly” executing health privatisation, which I’ve covered at length.
The National government has also confirmed they are introducing “Physician Associates” to the health system, presumably because it is a ‘cheaper’ and ‘easier to fill’ category of care than that doctors.
In the same vein, PM Luxon last year claimed that nurses could largely do the same job as doctors, earning a stinging rebuke from nurses and doctors alike.
The government’s PA plan, first initiated under Shane Reti, aims to start Physician Associates in primary care, before moving them to hospitals
However, the UK experience and research confirms the following1:
- PAs offer sub-standard care, compromising patient safety.
- PAs have the potential to negatively impact RMO training.
- PAs are a perpetual burden on a health system, rather than a long-term investment.
- There is no PA education program in Aotearoa.
- The employment of PAs is contrary to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and will not benefit those patients the consultation document aims to serve. i.e. because PA’s must, by default, be internationally trained it is expected that the widespread introduction of PAs will create further vulnerability and inequities and has the propensity to worsen health outcomes for Māori, Pacifica and rural communities. PAs without any local cultural competence training or experience here in New Zealand directly threaten the principles of our founding document.
More degradation of our health system under the National Government.
Health Minister Simeon Brown’s Secretive Privatisation Meet and Greet
“Concerns are being raised about privatisation after Health Minister Simeon Brown met representatives of a controversial multinational company that runs prisons and hospitals.
Mr Brown’s August diary mentions a “meeting briefing” with Serco on August 8.
When asked about the meeting, Mr Brown said, “Serco requested a meeting with me, which I accepted as I do with many stakeholders”.
“No particular proposals were discussed”….
A spokeswoman for Mr Brown did not respond to further questions from the Otago Daily Times, including whether Serco was interested in involvement in the new Dunedin hospital project…
In February 2011, Serco started operating the Mt Eden remand prison in Auckland.
The firm was heavily criticised for the existence of “fight clubs” within the prison that were not investigated until after their existence became public knowledge in July 2015, when footage emerged online.
This led to Serco’s contract to run Mt Eden prison being revoked and its operation returned to the Department of Corrections.
Serco was ordered to pay $8 million to the New Zealand government as a result of problems at Mt Eden Prison.
Serco continues to run Auckland South Corrections Facility (Kohuora) and it also delivers healthcare services in Australia, the South Pacific and the United Kingdom.
Dr Edwards said the future of New Zealand’s health system was not a matter for confidential commercial negotiation.
“Before the nation is locked into a long-term contract with a company defined by its failures, the public has a right to know what is being planned in its name.”
Green MP Francisco Hernandez said he was surprised Serco was even given an audience considering its reputation in New Zealand.
“The minister must be up front on why he’s meeting a company with a long and sordid history.
“Given Serco’s track record of overcharging and under-delivery overseas, it would be deeply concerning if they were to be used as part of the hospital rebuild.”
Mr Hernandez said the government’s lean towards the privatisation of services could mean Serco was a potential client.
“It’s essentially even more concerning because Serco is anything but a standard private operator.
“I’m frankly astonished that they took the meeting in the first place. Even the appearance of meeting Serco as the Minister of Health really discredits him.
“We need to get to the bottom of what’s actually happening. Maybe he’s meeting them for a completely innocent reason, but given this government’s track record, we highly doubt it.””
Note:
Labour leader Chris Hipkins has already said public institutions like hospitals and schools should not be privatised.
Serco, a British multinational (same as Compass Group, ACT’s chosen lunch provider), had already wired itself into Australian pubic services, but some of these have been gradually unwound over the years due to private failures and/or the commitment to put patients first.
The multinational’s past includes overcharging the NHS (British health system), running fighting clubs in NZ prisons, health laboratory failings following their takeover, safety failures resulting in death etc.
To be fair, all companies experience operating issues, but the nature and severity of these shows that the government – and especially in a portfolio as significant as health – should not be concealing the nature and range of its conversations.
Unfortunately, Simeon Brown is one of the least transparent Ministers in the National government. We still don’t know what extraordinary ten year locked in contracts Simeon has signed, nor why Health NZ statements about Tend Health’s PHO designation contradict those of its founder.
Quote:
Instead of focusing on .. funding to reduce shortages in order to bring down wait times for planned (elective) surgery, the Government has focused on funding to benefit the private sector.
The problem with this is that it is much more costly using private hospitals to reduce these wait times….
If the Government were to adopt long-term thinking and invest in the general practice and public hospital workforces rather than favour private providers, it would go a long way to ending the crisis along with reducing the demand for urgent care centres.
Following the funding will confirm whether or not the Government changes direction for the good of the public and their health system. The answer lies with who benefits.
Ian Powell – Follow the Money
Thank you MT for pursuing these stories.
This CoC are a pack of liars, whether commission or omission. Brown is a weasel, fudging around what is or isn't being publicly provided – not the same as funding it- so listen to the words. Our taxes are going to end up paying health corporates, not our own public health system. And then, once the private providers are up to speed, it will switch to a private funding model too. It's a long term plan, I reckon.
Private health providers pick up the easy stuff at the moment. Elective surgery, and services for what are mostly well people. And the telehealth service which has high risk of inadequate assessment of patients.
They don't provide 24h ED, ICU, CTU, neonatal, delivery, dialysis, mental health, complex health care, etc, etc, – those bits are expensive and complex.
And Brown does not seem to be addressing bed numbers – there are charts about this – NZ has appallingly low bed numbers by OECD standards. Hospitals have been shrinking beds for decades now. There are announcements about ED beds here and there, but actual inpatient beds seem to be increasing in the private sector only. Lots of cranes around private hospitals where I live.
potential slippery little shit stuff here. If Brown wants SERCO to be involved in running public hospitals, tell the public openly and take it to an election as a policy
Redacting reports late at that, lying by insisting they are putting more money into Health. Sneaky in every way.
Perhaps Serco could run fight clubs for patients on the waiting list as a way of getting surgery.