Hunkin-Tagaloa wants health shakeup with prevention at the centre

Labour candidate Henrietta Hunkin-Tagaloa says fixing New Zealand’s health system starts before people reach the hospital.

The Porirua-based candidate says primary care and prevention need a bigger focus as she draws on more than 20 years working across health, community and the arts.

“I know that the health or the quality of health for Pacific people in New Zealand is not where it needs to be for a sustainable, healthy community,” she tells William Terite on Pacific Mornings.

She says there is room to do more to prevent people becoming seriously unwell and to rethink how general practitioners (GPs) and the wider health system are funded.

Hunkin-Tagaloa was born and raised in Wellington. Her father migrated from the villages of Apia and Faleula in Sāmoa while her mother is from Mutalau in Niue.

She says both were heavily involved in their communities, and their example shaped her own path into health, community work and the arts.

Watch Henrietta Hunkin-Tagaloa's full interview below.

Her experience has also shaped her view of what Pacific representation in Parliament should look like.

“I've definitely seen opportunities for more in each of those spaces. So that's why I'm here,” she says.

“Pacific voice is a big voice. We come from lots of different parts of the community, lots of different ethnic backgrounds. I think that having a Pacific worldview is just as important as being Pacific.”

Henrietta Hunkin-Tagaloa, says Pacific voice is a big voice . Photo/Facebook/Henrietta Hunkin-Tagaloa.

She says that world view also includes the arts, which play an important role in Pacific wellbeing and community development.

“As Pacific people, we thrive in the arts,” she says, adding that the arts bring benefits across society.

She says her own family has benefited from Labour governments, but believes some Pacific communities have gone backwards in recent years.

“I've grown up in a family that has been able to thrive under a Labour government, and I've seen in the last several years in particular some of our families and our communities go backwards.”

On Labour’s health record under former ministers Andrew Little and Ayesha Verrall, she says the party has a good track record.

“Hindsight is always a wonderful thing and there's always things that we learn.”

Health is a priority for Henrietta Hunkin-Tagaloa. Photo/Stock

She says Labour’s current health policies are moving in the right direction. “Health needs a big shakeup, as we all know.”

In Porirua, she says cost of living remains a major concern for Pacific families.“The struggle is definitely real for people,” she says.

Asked whether the coalition government has done anything right, Hunkin-Tagaloa says credit should be given where it is due but she does not believe much has been done right for Pacific people.

“The more I've spoken to people, the more strife I hear from communities.”

Her focus now is on getting people enrolled and engaged ahead of the election.

“We take these polls as they come, and we look forward to November showing the real result,” she says.

From left: Henrietta Hunkin-Tagaloa with, Greg O'Connor, MP Ayesha Verrall, Rob Popata, MP Barbara Edmonds, MP Kieran McAnulty and MP Ginny Anderson. Photo/PMN News/Thomas Tarurongo Wynne

Ranked number 67 on Labour’s list, Hunkin-Tagaloa has been a Labour member for four years and works closely with the party’s Kenepuru candidate Barbara Edmonds, who is the current MP for Mana and Labour’s spokesperson for Finance and Economy.

“I've seen the way that she leads with heart,” Hunkin-Tagaloa said. “She's out in the community all the time.”

And she has her eye on a bigger milestone for Pacific representation. “One day I think we will have a Pacific Prime Minister.”

The 2026 general election is on 7 November. The last day to enrol is 25 October with advance voting starting on 26 October.