The dismantling of the Māori Health Authority is under way after the Government introduced a law change today to scrap the entity just 18 months after it was established.

Parliament will debate the legislation under urgency this afternoon.

Health Minister Dr Shane Reti said the law change focused narrowly on the changes needed to disestablish the Māori Health Authority (MHA), which was part of National’s coalition agreements with Act and NZ First.

Introducing the legislation was one of the items on the coalition Government’s 100-day plan.

All of the authority’s roles and functions would transfer to Health NZ - Te Whatu Ora and the Ministry of Health by the end of March, Reti said. The authority would no longer exist from June 30.

“The narrow focus on disestablishment doesn’t mean an end to our focus on Māori health for those who need it,” Reti said.

He said the solutions for Māori should be Māori-led and not from “a centralised Wellington hub”.

“Merging the functions of the Māori Health Authority and transferring its roles into the public health system means the health system keeps the expertise it needs to improve health outcomes for all New Zealanders including Māori,” Reti said.

“I acknowledge the many people who have been part of the Māori Health Authority. Your expertise is valuable, and I look forward to your ongoing input into New Zealand’s health system.”

Reti said Iwi-Māori Partnership Boards, which advocate for whānau within their communities, would remain in place. The Hauora Māori Advisory Committee would also remain in place.

“The Government will continue working with both groups to chart a new direction for Māori health. Their voices may evolve but both can have a role.

“No matter how the health system is shaped, what’s important is how it functions. We need function over form, we need results over reports.”

The scrapping of the MHA will take place just days before a Waitangi Tribunal hearing on an urgent claim over the issue on Thursday.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has said the timing was not deliberate, but it would not affect the decision to scrap the MHA. He said it was something all three parties had campaigned on.

“We opposed the Māori Health Authority from the beginning because we don’t believe more bureaucracy is the way to provide improved outcomes for Māori,” he told reporters this morning.

Luxon said that funding would continue to be targeted at Māori health initiatives - such as a $50 million boost for immunising Māori children announced in December.

But he would not confirm whether all of the $750m a year allocated to the MHA would be used for this purpose.

The previous Labour Government established the authority at the recommendation of the Health and Disability Review in 2020.

A Waitangi Tribunal report on health services for Māori in 2019 also recommended the creation of a standalone entity after identifying a number of inequities for Māori within the health system.