Delivering more nurses and midwives

New Zealand’s health system is in crisis, with a severe shortage of nurses and midwives contributing to ballooning waitlists, delays accessing treatment or maternity care, and overcrowded emergency departments.

New Zealand does not train enough nurses or midwives to address this shortage, and the ones we do train are being actively and aggressively recruited to move overseas, particularly to Australia.

National will incentivise more Kiwis to study for a career as a nurse or midwife and bond them to remain in New Zealand after graduation for at least five years. Our plan will also address immediate shortages by making New Zealand more competitive in the global competition for nurses and midwives.

National’s plan to deliver more nurses and midwives:

Incentives to encourage more Kiwis to study nursing or midwifery
Bonding to keep nurses and midwives in New Zealand after graduation
Competitive immigration settings to attract more overseas nurses and midwives

Why we need a new approach

In the last five years under Labour, almost 19,000 nurses have left the public health system.

Instead of urgently addressing the workforce crisis, Labour has focussed on restructuring the bureaucracy, while hard-working and dedicated health professionals have struggled with the weight of a faltering system.

A National government won’t stand-by and allow the health sector to remain in crisis.

Overview of National’s plan

1). Incentives to encourage more Kiwis to study nursing or midwifery

National will pay nurses’ and midwives’ student loan repayments up to a total of $4,500 a year for the first five years of their career, provided they remain working in their profession in New Zealand.

Covering student loan repayments for five years means a typical registered nurse or midwife would see an increase in their after-tax take-home pay of $4,500 a year, or $87 a week. Over a five-year period, they would be up to $22,500 better off.

This significant increase in take-home pay will act as a strong incentive for more Kiwis considering their study options to pursue a career as a nurse or midwife.

2). Bonding to keep nurses and midwives in New Zealand after graduation

To access the student loan repayment scheme, nurses and midwives will need to enter into a bonding agreement with the Government where they commit to working in New Zealand in their profession for at least five years after they graduate.

This will also be open to registered nurses and midwives who are already in the workforce, on a pro-rata basis, supporting the health sector to retain early-career nurses and midwives in New Zealand.

3). Competitive immigration settings to attract more overseas nurses and midwives

National will also make New Zealand more competitive in the global competition for skilled workers, by allowing qualified overseas nurses and midwives to come here on a six-month temporary visa without a job offer to look for work and to bring their immediate family members with them.

We will also establish a relocation support scheme, offering up to 1000 qualified overseas nurses and midwives relocation grants worth up to $10,000 each to support their move to New Zealand.

Labour has overseen a crisis in the health workforce. National will end the nurse and midwife shortage so Kiwis can access the health care they deserve.

Delivering more nurses and midwives