Rural mums paying for empty promises

"Not one cent of the $2 million allocated in 2007 to help with travel and support of rural midwives has been handed out," according to National MPs Jo Goodhew and Katrina Shanks.

The funding boost was announced December 2006, to recognise the extra challenges that midwives face when working in isolation. It was hoped that the extra funding would encourage rural midwife retention.

"But in response to a Parliamentary question, the Minister of Health has confirmed that not a bean has found its way to those frontline midwives," says National's Associate Health spokeswoman (Rural & Aged Care) Jo Goodhew.

"This is yet another example of the Labour Government trumpeting the amount of money they will spend on health, only to dither for more than a year as health professionals wait in vain for the trickle down to take effect," she says.

National List MP Katrina Shanks says the midwifery workforce is facing a crisis with an ageing membership and an increase in births.

"Babies are still being born in rural New Zealand, but midwife numbers are seriously low. While the Government has acknowledged the problem, the foot dragging is only making the situation worse.

"Once again Labour proves that when it comes to healthcare, it is all talk and very little real action," Ms Shanks says.