Documents show alleged ties between NZ First and tobacco giant
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RNZ News
an hour ago
- RNZ News
Doctors welcome health minister's GP training funding shake-up
Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners president Dr Samantha Murton. Photo: Supplied Doctors are welcoming the government's move to fully fund specialist GP training. Previously, medical graduates only had their first year of specialist general practitioner training paid for, but now all three years would be covered. The government would also cover the exam costs for about 200 trainees, and full education costs for about 400 year 2 and 3 trainees each year. President of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners - which delivers the 'General Practice Education Programme' - Dr Samantha Murton, said the changes brought GP training in line with all other medical training across New Zealand and Australia. "This funding will be a gamechanger for current and future trainees. This is a significant acknowledgement for the specialism of the general practice workforce and the vital role we play in healthcare being as important as those of our peers in secondary hospital settings. "Not only will this funding offer the necessary financial support our GP registrars need throughout their training, but we are optimistic that the news will encourage medical graduates who have an interest in general practice but have been put off by the financial barriers to make the step to train as a specialist GP. To them, I say welcome and you won't regret your decision." Chief executive Toby Beaglehole said the college was enthusiastic that primary care funding was heading in the right direction. "We are focused on building a sustainable workforce for the future , which starts with training and the equitability of our program costs to other specialist medical training. "This funding sends a signal to the sector that the expertise of general practice is valued as a vital part of the health system." Announcing the changes at a GP conference on Friday, Health Minister Simeon Brown said they would help improve New Zealanders' access to primary healthcare . Health Minister Simeon Brown. Photo: Calvin Samuel / RNZ He also announced the government's funding method for GP clinics, known as capitation, would be updated for the first time in more than 20 years, with changes taking effect from 1 July, 2026. "The current model is outdated and doesn't reflect the needs of patients. The revised formula will go beyond just age and sex, to also include multimorbidity, rurality , and socioeconomic deprivation," Brown said. "These changes will better distribute funding to where it's needed most, so that GP clinics with a higher needs population of enrolled patients will receive more funding to care for them." A new national health target would be developed with the primary care sector, proposing to ensure that more than 80 percent of people could see a primary care provider within one week. "People shouldn't have to wait weeks to see a doctor. Delays can lead to poorer health outcomes, more pressure on hospitals, and growing frustration for patients. We're focused on delivering timely, quality care that puts patients first." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
NZ Herald
7 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Supermarkets plead guilty to pricing errors, Consumer NZ calls for penalties
A dodgy multibuy refers to a situation where the individual price and the multibuy price don't add up to a saving. A mince special where a tray of meat was $4 or people could buy three for $20. Photo / RNZ Consumer NZ pointed to a mince special where a tray of meat was $4 or people could buy three for $20. In another case, packaging seemed to be making a confusing difference. Two individual bags of Gingernuts were selling for $5 but the club price for a 500g twin-pack was $5.59. The Gingernuts that were selling for $5 but the club price for a twin-pack was $5.59. Photo / RNZ Sometimes the price on the shelf tag does not match what you pay at checkout. In this case, supplied by Consumer, the price tag on the shelf said $27, but the customer paid more than $35 at the checkout. A box of Coca Cola a customer paid more at checkout for than the shelf price tag. Photo / RNZ Sometimes it's just hard to work out what the price is. Consumer provided an example of double cream brie 'reduced' to $10.60 for a quick sale – or was it on sale for $9.80? Sometimes it seems as though there are multiple labels for the same item. Double cream brie with two prices. Photo / RNZ In this case, two signs had two different prices for a single avocado. 'One said $1.69. The other said $1.99,' Consumer NZ spokesperson Abby Damen said. A sign saying a single avocado is $1.99. Photo / RNZ 'The customer was charged $1.99. She returned two days later to ask what could be done about the pricing error. 'She was offered a refund of the price difference but after pointing out the supermarket's new refund policy, she was refunded $2 and also kept her avocado.' Chief executive at Consumer Jon Duffy said anyone charged more than the shelf price was entitled by law to a refund of the difference. He said both supermarket chains promised a full refund in that scenario, but consumers sometimes had to know what was available. A Foodstuffs spokesperson said with more than 14,000 products in a typical supermarket, and prices changing frequently due to supplier costs, promotions or new product lines, pricing was a complex job. 'But for our customers, it's simple. They rightly expect the price on the shelf to match what they pay at the checkout,' he said. 'We take pricing accuracy as seriously as health and safety, aiming for zero errors. 'Across our local, family-owned stores, we manage tens of thousands of price labels and process millions of transactions every week, and we've invested in better systems, daily checks and electronic shelf labels to help get it right. 'If we do get it wrong, our policy is that the customer gets a refund and keeps the product. We've also strengthened staff training and store processes to make sure pricing is clear and accurate.' Woolworths said it had more 3.5 million transactions in stores weekly 'and sometimes errors do occur'. 'When they do, we try to make things right, through our long-standing and market-leading refund policy. Under that policy, if a customer is charged more than the advertised price for a product, they get a full refund and can keep the product.' Duffy said Consumer had received 20 complaints about supermarket pricing since Tuesday. A normal rate would be two a day, he said. -RNZ
Otago Daily Times
8 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Supermarket pricing errors to be wary of
By Susan Edmunds of RNZ Consumer NZ says supermarkets are still making pricing errors, despite increasing pressure and scrutiny on them. Charges have been filed and a number of supermarkets have pleaded guilty to breaching the Fair Trading Act due to inaccurate pricing and misleading specials. But Consumer NZ says misleading specials are still costing shoppers tens of millions of dollars a year and has launched a petition calling for tougher penalties for breaches of the act. It provided examples of a number of ways that people could be caught out by misleading signage in supermarkets. Dodgy multibuy A dodgy multibuy refers to a situation where the individual price and the multibuy price don't add up to a saving. Consumer NZ pointed to this mince special where a tray of meat was $4 or people could buy three for $20. In another case, packaging seemed to be making a confusing difference. Two individual backs of Gingernuts were selling for $5 but the club price for a 500g twin-pack was $5.59. Different pricing Sometimes the price on the shelf tag does not match what you pay at checkout. In this case, supplied by Consumer, the price tag on the shelf said $27, but the customer paid more than $35 at the checkout. Confusing Sometimes it's just hard to work out what the price is. Consumer provided an example of double cream brie was "reduced" to $10.60 for a quick sale - or was it on sale for $9.80? Mismatches Sometimes it seems as though there are multiple labels for the same item. In this case, two signs had two different prices for a single avocado. "One said $1.69. The other said $1.99," Consumer NZ spokesperson Abby Damen said. "The customer was charged $1.99. She returned two days later to ask what could be done about the pricing error. She was offered a refund of the price difference but after pointing out the supermarket's new refund policy, she was refunded $2 and also kept her avocado." Chief executive at Consumer Jon Duffy said anyone who was charged more than the shelf price was entitled by law to a refund of the difference. He said both supermarket chains promised a full refund in that scenario, but consumers sometimes had to know that was what was available. A Foodstuffs spokesperson said with more than 14,000 products in a typical supermarket, and prices changing frequently due to supplier costs, promotions or new product liens, pricing was a complex job. "But for our customers, it's simple. They rightly expect the price on the shelf to match what they pay at the checkout," he said. "We take pricing accuracy as seriously as health and safety, aiming for zero errors. "Across our local, family-owned stores, we manage tens of thousands of price labels and process millions of transactions every week, and we've invested in better systems, daily checks and electronic shelf labels to help get it right. "If we do get it wrong, our policy is that the customer gets a refund and keeps the product. We've also strengthened staff training and store processes to make sure pricing is clear and accurate." Woolworths said it had more 3.5 million transactions in our stores each week "and sometimes errors do occur". "When they do, we try to make things right, through our long-standing and market-leading refund policy. Under that policy, if a customer is charged more than the advertised price for a product, they get a full refund and can keep the product." Duffy said Consumer had received 20 complaints about supermarket pricing since Tuesday. A normal rate would be two a day, he said.
