10171 (2025). Hūhana Lyndon to the Minister for Whānau Ora

10171 (2025). Hūhana Lyndon to the Minister for Whānau Ora: What processes, if any, are in place to help the whānau that are in the care of the current Whānau Ora providers transition to the new providers?

Hon Tama Potaka: Te Puni Kōkiri advises me on all aspects of the Whānau Ora procurement process, including transition matters. By way of context, I have been advised that Te Puni Kōkiri conducted an open and transparent procurement process commencing with an Advance Notice issued on the Government Electronic Tender Service (GETS) on 13 September 2024. Te Puni Kōkiri started a Registration of Interest that was issued on GETS on 4 October 2024, and a shortlist of respondents were invited to respond to a closed Request for Proposal (RFP) issued on 22 November 2024. A suitably qualified evaluation panel reviewed and scored all submissions from RFP respondents and made its recommendations. The open procurement process builds on existing foundations and ensures that the Whānau Ora commissioning is aligned with the Social Investment approach. That said, the core elements of Whānau Ora remain unchanged. For example, the foundational Whānau Ora Outcomes Framework continues to underpin new Whānau Ora outcomes agreements with commissioning agencies, and services will be whānau-centred locally-led and government-enabled with a devolved model where Commissioning Agencies contract with regional networks of community-based service providers. I am advised that the procurement process places a greater focus on targeting more Government investment to those hardest to reach communities, based on Census evidence of those New Zealanders living at the highest levels of deprivation. Enhanced collection of data will drive further investment into Whānau Ora, with these changes also seeking to strengthen the Whānau Ora frontline workforce, and have the frontline focussed on early identification of risks to our most vulnerable whānau. Te Puni Kōkiri has carefully considered the transition activities that will be required to successfully implement the changes and is actively progressing these with the preferred respondents as a priority. I have been advised that all successful respondents have already provided, through the procurement process, their approaches for effective transition and implementation of the changes. Te Puni Kōkiri is still in an active procurement process and is immediately focussed on concluding outcomes agreements with preferred respondents (incoming commissioning agencies), and implementing transition arrangements with both incoming and incumbent transition agencies. Te Puni Kōkiri is also focused on suitable de-briefing processes with RFP respondents which did not progress to the next stage of the procurement. Such de-briefings will include a range of information including details of the RFP evaluation panel. I am advised Te Puni Kōkiri will make public further details on the outcome of the procurement process and details such as the composition of the RFP evaluation panel, in due course. Based on the advice I have received I can say that right now, commercial negotiations are underway. In accordance with Speaker’s Ruling 199/6, I do not consider it in the public interest to say anything further until the conclusion of the procurement process to ensure that the commercial negotiations can proceed without interruption.