Luxon focuses on ICU capacity

PrimeMinister Jacinda Ardern has strongly defended her Government’s Covid-19 response under questioning from new Opposition leader Christopher Luxon in his first Question Time as leader.

Luxon stumbled as he started one of his supplementary questions and had to cede the attack to ACT leader David Seymour at one point.

His line of attack focused on the $50 billion Covid-19 response fund, which he said should have been spent first onmore intensive care beds, rather than other measures like ‘‘eradicating wallabies’’ that were designed to support employment.

Overall physical ICU beds have not risen dramatically since the start of the pandemic. The Government says it has increased surge staffing capacity significantly, and put $644million into the system last week – but clinicians have argued this funding will take years to result in the needed staff to seriously increase capacity.

Ardern said the overall focus had been to stop needing huge numbers of intensive care beds at all.

‘‘I reject the premise of that question – not only did we increase the amount of money that went into training our ICU staff, we have, of course, also put in capital expenditure for new ICU physical space as well.

‘‘Our focus is on making sure people don’t end up in ICU in the first place,’’ Ardern said.

Seymour interjected into the back and forth to note the Government’s managed isolation system had stopped new nurses getting into the country.

Luxon quoted Wellington ICU specialist Dr Paul Young, who said: ‘‘I challenge you to visit any ICU in the country and find one clinician, just one who can show you their newly staffed ICU beds.’’

Ardern said there was a surge capacity of an additional 200 beds and that no matter what, the ICU capacity would be overwhelmed if coronavirus was allowed to run rampant.

‘‘No matter what your surge capacity is, or your ICU beds, if you are overwhelmed, you are overwhelmed. No country in the world had capacity to save people’s lives if their ICU is overwhelmed.’’

Luxon asked why it had taken the Government 21 months to announce funding for new ICU beds when New SouthWales had managed to double its capacity.

Ardern said she was happy to compare New Zealand to New SouthWales given it had seen 75,000 cases.

Luxon then changed tack to focus on the traffic light system.

‘‘What does she say to the [Auckland] Viaduct business owners I spoke with last week who are utterly confused by her traffic light framework, which suggests that they should already be at Green. And when will she finally tell them? What actually is the criteria for a colour change?’’

Ardern replied that she was pleased those businesses could now open and people could visit them with the ‘‘confidence that the outbreak is contained and