MINISTER SPOKE OUT OF TURN

Chronicle (Levin), 18 May 1946, Page 3

MINISTER SPOKE OUT OF TURN

WAU'L'KUUAU, Mny 17. The auggestion l>y the Minister of Health that Hospital lioards were failiiig to fuliil their oliligatioas . in the provirfion of sujtablc hospital and saua1 oriu iu faeilities for tubereulosis sufferers, eypeeially i'or Maoris, was stroiigly refuted by the l'ukeora Sanatoriuin Couimitteo at Waipukurau today. The committee, whieh reprcsents seveu boards on the East Coast, referred to ! the statemeuts by the JVlinister at Waii tara on May 4 when Mr. Nordmeyer j was reported to havc said Hospital | Hoards had not dorie wliat thcy should j Lo Irelp eombat tho discase. "That is a vcry dcfiuite charge j agaiust all boards," deelarcd Mr. M. G. | M. Williams, of Wairoa, "and it is j I'airly obvious that the Minister r is passing the buck. r* Ile added that a tubereulosis annexe had been reopened at Wairoa reecntly and although it was smull, it was ncver full. It was known that eases for treatinent existed but the Maoris rcfused to eome for treatment. "An unfortunate and misleading statement;" was the description. -of the Minister 's remarks by Mr. R.' Haf'ding, Uawke's Bay. "It is known by the I boards that there are aboufc £13,000,000 ! worth of hospital work to be done ih tho Domiuiou and that material and labour are not available. It is a very unfortunate statement for a Minister to make, " Mr. Harding added, while tho chairman, Mr. T. P. Hunter, claimed that the Minister had been speaking ou t of turn.