A crowd estimated at up to 35,000 in Dunedin heard speakers slam government misinformation and tell MPs they will be responsible for deaths caused by a hospital downgrade.
Today's huge turnout was in response to an announcement by the government this week that the new Dunedin hospital was on the chopping block amid budget blowouts, and the government was investigating two scaled-back options.
In a visit to Dunedin on Thursday, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti and Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop said the main inpatient building of the new hospital could now be drastically scaled back, or dumped altogether, in favour of retrofitting the existing hospital.
Thousands marched from the Dental School building to the Octagon to voice their opposition to any cuts to the new hospital.
Dunedin Mayor Jules Radich said the people of the South had spoken with one voice and now the government needed to listen.
"We’re not going accept broken promises and a hospital that fails the people of our region.
“This is no longer a Dunedin issue or even a Southern issue. This is now a national issue, shining a spotlight on the government’s health funding and priorities - and they can’t simply ignore us.
“We’re not going away. In fact, we’re just getting started."
As the first part of the protest reached the Octagon, protesters were still waiting to leave the starting point.
It took about 45 minutes for the march to reach the Octagon and the Dunedin City Council estimated the turnout at up to 35,000 people.
A smaller march was held in Wānaka.
Nurse Linda Smillie told the crowd in Dunedin the downgrade would cause patient deaths and government ministers and southern MPs would have to bear the responsibility for that.
"This will result in patient deaths. There's no if, buts or maybes. It will just be a simple matter of time when that happens. I want it today to be very clear on whose shoulders the responsibility for that sits.
"The threat to the health of those of us here and our future loved ones is very real," she said.
"Our hospital community are shocked and disappointed at this week's news," Dr Sheila Barnett, a Dunedin anaesthetic doctor and clinical transformation group chair for the new hospital, told the crowd.
"Our team have worked for seven years balancing busy clinical jobs, providing common sense clinical input, and many of us have lived and breathed this project.
"There has been a lot of give and take, but the final design we had was balanced and it reflected what the southern region would need in the decades ahead. I know that what we have designed would have worked.
"We don't know yet what the next few months will look like."
"We are standing up against divide and rule based on this misinformation. We are told that other regional hospitals upgrades will miss out if Dunedin gets the hospital. Even the regions don't accept this. They were in Parliament saying, This is bulls***.
"We will fight until we get what we promised. We will not wait for justice to be done. The government has taken away from the people. It is time for us to take it back. Build it right."
The protest, sparked by concern over cuts to the crucial project, gained momentum since the government's shock announcement that the project faces a significant downgrade.
Viv Oswald, a practising nurse at the hospital, said the proposed downgrade was "ridiculous".
She had voted for National in last year's general election and labelled Thursday's announcement "appalling".
"We need it built, and built properly."
His sign said "Pay our nurses properly now".
"Buildings don't cure people - people cure people," Mr Moffat said.
Joanna Inch, of Fairfield, attended the march with her 13-year-old daughter Ruby-Mae.
She said her father had once needed to wait four years to have a knee surgery at the hospital and called the downgrade "absolutely appalling".
Ruby-Mae said it was not just elderly people who used the hospital, and younger people needed Healthcare to ensure they made it to 50.
"We need to make sure they do see that number."
John Howell, of North East Valley, said building the hospital was a matter of priorities.
The government was "completely full of s***" and was turning their back on its promise.
"They need to build this hospital, as originally promised".
The government has been accused of broken promises after the "entirely unacceptable" scaling back of the new hospital.
We're just getting stared: Radich
Mayor Jules Radich was delighted with today's turnout.
“Today up to 35,000 people from across the South have come together on Dunedin’s streets to express their outrage at proposed cuts to our new regional hospital.
“This is the biggest protest in Dunedin in decades, and together we’ve sent a powerful message to government that we’re not going accept broken promises and a hospital that fails the people of our region.
“This is no longer a Dunedin issue or even a Southern issue. This is now a national issue, shining a spotlight on the government’s health funding and priorities, and they can’t simply ignore us.
“We’re not going away. In fact, we’re just getting started.
“I want to thank everyone who supported the march, from individuals and families to the doctors, nurses and other clinicians and medical students who could be forced to work in a substandard facility if the government’s plans are not challenged.
“This southern region tertiary hospital has been a long time coming and every element has been designed in consultation with nurses, doctors and health professionals who know what is needed to give everyone the care they deserve.
“The fact the government now wants to downscale such a critical facility for the South is an outrage, and people are right to be angry.”
Mr Radich said the campaign will continue, and phase two will shift the focus to direct lobbying of key Ministers in Wellington.
“We’re now asking people to send thousands of postcards directly to Ministers Bishop and Reti, telling them exactly what the cuts would mean for them and their whānau, and why the government should keep its promise.”
He would also lead a Southern delegation to Wellington to continue the campaign in person, with exact details to be confirmed soon, and Councillors will write an open letter to the Ministers, calling for them to stick to the government’s promise.
“This is all about continuing to apply pressure and making sure the government hears our message loud and clear, and one thing is for sure – we won’t be letting up.
“Our message is simple: build it once and build it right, with no clinical cuts, and that’s what the people of the South have said with one voice, loudly and clearly, today.”
Govt remains committed to new hospital: Reti
In a statement today, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti said:
“I absolutely recognise the passion of New Zealanders when it comes to delivery of health services, and that was reflected in Dunedin today.
“There’s always been an extremely high degree of public interest in this large and complex piece of infrastructure, and while this week’s announcement was not an easy one to make, it had to be done to ensure we can deliver in Dunedin, and across the rest of the country’s hospital network as well.
“I want to assure the people of Dunedin and the South that Health New Zealand and ministers are fully committed to making sure we deliver long overdue solutions to their region’s health infrastructure needs.
”The government remains committed to building a new hospital in Dunedin.”
