Trying to gauge exactly what she has achieved in that time is not the easiest of tasks, for several reasons.
Firstly, unlike actual ministers, her appointment diary is not made public, so Dr Craig could have met every senior health figure in the country multiple times over since her appointment in May and you would never know about it.
Secondly, while she is now a part of Labour’s health team, she is very much the junior ... if a Parliamentary Question is asked or a debate is being held on a health issue, one minister, three associate ministers and the chairman of the health select committee are more likely to claim a speaking slot than the poor old PPS.
Thirdly, when it was created, the role was envisaged as one where Dr Craig would spend much of her time either advising her colleagues — and as a doctor and public health researcher she is well credentialed to do so — and working internally on developing party health policy.
Hence, fourthly, all of that being very backroom stuff which takes a great deal of time, it has afforded Dr Craig little opportunity so far — in public, anyway — to shine.
Her speaking opportunities in Parliament have also been few and far between, but what she has chosen to speak about when called is interesting.
The intersection between child health and poverty was the focus of much of Dr Craig’s work in academia and public policy prior to her embarking on her political career: much of her maiden speech was devoted to the topic.
Dr Craig weighed in not once but twice on the Oversight of Oranga Tamariki System Bill and Children and Young People’s Commission Bill, both times calling for strong and independent monitoring of Oranga Tamariki — the need for which was highlighted again this week by the release of the Ombudsman’s damning opinion of OT’s shameful management of the case of Tauranga child Malachi Subecz.
She was down to speak as a recent appointee to the social services select committee, and despite not being on it when the legislation was considered the topic is close to Dr Craig’s heart.
She has also taken two general debate slots, normally eagerly sought by junior MPs, to make broad speeches on climate change and the cost of living, both of which are health issues in a wider rather than a specific sense.
The one time Dr Craig has taken the shield to defend the Government’s performance in health, in the Budget speech, she sung the praises of greater investment in health infrastructure and on the Pharmac budget, but also picked out less obvious highlights such as increased funding for dental care, ambulance services and workforce development.
What this suggests is, as befits her roving role as PPS, is that Dr Craig is taking a far-reaching view of what is, after all, a very big health system.
Perhaps indicative of that wide lens is a local issue Dr Craig has thrown herself into recently, the future of the New River Estuary.
The waterway is an extensive wetland where several of the rivers and streams which border Invercargill meet and flow out to sea.
From a distance it all looks very scenic, but a close up examination shows that its sea grasses are dying, various urban waterways are discharging into it, and that evidence of a former nearby landfill is starting to emerge.
Not at all coincidentally, Dr Craig recently entered a Bill in the member’s Bill ballot which, if drawn and passed, would allow territorial authorities to use revenue from the waste disposal levy to mitigate adverse effects from legacy landfills.
The waterway got an extensive appendix all to itself in a report by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment on managing the country’s estuaries, which notes than not just the health of flora and fauna but also nearby humans is endangered by the soup of substances to be found there.
Dr Craig’s interest is not just as a concerned local resident, but she can also easily spot the broader public health concerns that the estuary poses now, let alone if effective intervention is not initiated soon.
What will be interesting is whether this panoramic approach to health policy in any way manifests itself in the reams of policy documents yet to emerge as part of the Government’s health reforms, such as the various health plans mandated by the reform legislation and the still nascent health localities.
However, it is likely Dr Craig will have to enjoy the quiet satisfaction of knowing which ideas were hers, rather than being the standard bearer for them on the hustings next year.
Woodhouse ousted
National Dunedin list MP Michael Woodhouse is quite proud of his almost unblemished parliamentary behavioural record, having been expelled from the House just the once.
Make that the twice now, in circumstance which do not flatter him.
Mr Woodhouse’s second ejection came in the committee stages of what is now the Accident Compensation (Maternal Birth Injury and Other Matters) Amendment Act, legislation he and National voted for.
Despite this being a non-contentious law change, Mr Woodhouse managed to somehow conjure up a clash with assistant speaker Greg O’Connor over whether he should have accepted a motion to bring the debate to a close.
Mr Woodhouse was probably right that Mr O’Connor could have let things go on a bit longer, but given Mr O’Connor knew that National supported the Bill you can understand why he felt it was a better use of Parliament’s time to move on.
Regardless, Mr Woodhouse got his flounce on as he opted to leave the chamber in high dudgeon.
"This is outrageous. I’m out of here. What a load of shit, Greg," he said, at which point Mr O’Connor asked him to stand, withdraw, and apologise.
"No, he won’t," Mr Woodhouse replied, leaving just as Mr O’Connor formally turfed him out.
This was hardly an issue to stand or fall on, and Mr Woodhouse may well now regret having made such a big thing out of it.
