REGION G – OCEANIA

NEW WORLD ORDER

(New Zealand)

Andrew Little

(Health Minister, 2020+)

The Official Story

ANDREW LITTLE
(Minister of Health, 2020+)

Andrew James Little (born 7 May 1965) is a New Zealand politician and former trade union official, currently serving as Minister of Health and Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations. He is also the Minister for the Government Communications Security Bureau and the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service. Little was previously Leader of the Opposition from 2014 to 2017.

Little was the national secretary of New Zealand’s largest trade union, the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU), and he was President of the Labour Party from 2009 to 2011. He entered Parliament in 2011 as a list MP. Little served as the Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party from 18 November 2014 until 1 August 2017, when he resigned to make way for Jacinda Ardern.

With the formation of a Labour-led coalition government in October 2017, Little was appointed as Minister of Justice, Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, and Minister in charge of the Government Communications Security Bureau and New Zealand Security Intelligence Service. In July 2020, Little was appointed as the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety. Following the 2020 election, Little left the Justice and Workplace Relations and Safety roles and was instead appointed Minister of Health.

Cabinet Minister (2017–present)

During the 2020 New Zealand general election held on 17 October 2020, Little was re-elected on the Labour Party list. In early November, Little was named as Minister of Health and also retained his ministerial portfolios for the Government Communications Security Bureau, the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service, Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, and Pike River Re-entry. He was additionally appointed Lead Coordination Minister for the Government’s Response to the Royal Commission’s Report into the Terrorist Attack on the Christchurch Mosques after that report was published in December 2020.

In mid-June 2022, Little in his capacity as Health Minister acknowledged that the country’s health system was under strain due to a manpower shortage and the effects of COVID-19 and the seasonal flu on hospitals and health clinics. However, he denied that health services were facing a crisis. In response, the National Party’s health spokesperson Shane Reti accused Little of denying that New Zealand’s healthcare system was facing a crisis. Little’s remarks were criticised by various unidentified health workers, who reported that significant staff shortages and hospital demand in response to COVID-19 and the seasonal flu were straining hospital resources. In early July 2022, the Association of General Surgeons issued an open letter to Little stating that the staffing shortage was undermining the ability of doctors to deliver care to patients.

Source: Wikipedia