Covid 19 coronavirus Delta outbreak editorial: David Seymour and the Māori access code

Editorial

EDITORIAL:

Act Party leader David Seymour may well be a fan of former US President Ronald Reagan and therefore won't mind again hearing one of his oft-repeated quotes: "If you're explaining, you're losing."

After some robust criticism this week, Seymour has explained he posted an image of a confidential Māori vaccination access code to his followers because he wanted all New Zealanders, regardless of race, to have the jab.

"I don't care if you're Pākehā, Māori, Pasifika or Chinese – we should all have equal access. But none of us should be prioritised above the others because of who our grandparents were," he wrote in a Herald column.

In his explanation, he also claimed to have done Māori a service.

"By publishing the 'Priority Access Code for Māori', I've done more to promote Māori vaccination than the Government's taxpayer-funded advertising this week."

Some might agree it was a smart way to reinforce that healthcare should be provided equally to all New Zealanders.

He posted the image with the message: "If you're worried about vaccination waiting times, you no longer need to make an appointment. All you need to do is use this access code."

Act leader David Seymour talking at Parliament to address a tweet he sent out early on Monday. Photo / Robert Kitchin, Pool, File

The message some Māori might take from that is to get to the back of the queue. For "queue", one could replace the words "bus" or "class".

Unless we raise Māori rates of vaccination - and those of any group more susceptible to serious illness or death - we are all in for the dire consequences of an overrun hospital system.

This is not the time to be glib. It is not the time to discourage anyone from being vaccinated. It is the time for serious efforts to raise all the boats together in an urgent vaccination programme.