The Government has delivered on its commitment to roll out the free methamphetamine harm reduction programme Te Ara Oranga to the eastern Bay of Plenty, with services now available in Murupara.

'We're building a whole new mental health system, and that includes expanding successful programmes like Te Ara Oranga,” says Health Minister Andrew Little.

'Demand for addiction treatment services has grown steadily over the past decade, and we need to do more to support people and communities struggling with drugs to get the wrap around support they need.

'Te Ara Oranga is a unique partnership between police, mental health and addiction services, community groups, and iwi service providers. It gives methamphetamine users the opportunity to get culturally-appropriate therapeutic help with an approach specially tailored for the local community.

'It has been shown to reduce drug-related harm and support better community health, improved social wellbeing including re-engagement with whānau and employment, and better justice outcomes including reduced family violence and crime.

'Te Ara Oranga was successfully piloted in Northland and has been acknowledged as a game-changer in the fight against methamphetamine and drug-related crime.

'More than 3,000 Northland people and their whānau have now been helped since the programme was first started. For every dollar spent on the programme there has been a return of between $3 and $7.

'It's an example of a community-wide and led programme that works and changes lives and we want more New Zealanders to benefit from it,” says Little.

The eastern Bay of Plenty region has been identified as a community experiencing a high level of drug-related harm. It has higher than average methamphetamine use/possession related offences, wastewater testing results, and proportion of people seeking help to get on top of drug addictions.

'This government is committed to a health-based response for those who experience drug addiction. Making the benefits of Te Ara Oranga available to in the eastern Bay of Plenty is part of that,” says Little.

In addition to services rolling out in Murupara, $3.5 million of funding from Budget 2022 will enable Te Ara Oranga to expand and cover a geographical area from Whakatāne to Rotorua, and include Ōpōtiki, Kawerau, and Murupara.

Budget 2022 included a $100-million investment for a specialist mental health and addiction package.

The Green party has called for the programme to be expanded nationwide.

'Te Ara Oranga has shown that it can reduce drug harm through targeted community projects, and there is no good reason why these services cannot be made available right across the country,” says Green spokesperson for drug law reform, Chlöe Swarbrick.

'The Government still spends four times as much on ineffective drug law enforcement than on measures focused on genuinely reducing harm.

'Over the last five years, Te Ara Oranga has established an effective partnership between police, mental health and addiction services, community groups and iwi service-providers - and the results speak for themselves, including 34 percent reduction in harm from offending.

'The Green Party has been calling for a nationwide expansion of Te Ara Organa since 2018. The Drug Foundation also wants to see the programme expanded across the country. While we are delighted that the Government has followed our lead and expanded the programme to the Eastern Bay of Plenty, we do not see any reason to stop there.

'We have spent good money after bad for 40-plus years on mainstream punitive approaches and it has only made things worse for our communities. It is time to roll out an evidence-based public health approach to meth harm as the proven best possible way to reduce harm among our communities.

'But if we are serious about tackling drug harm then the Government also needs to fund the health, housing, and community services that address the very problems which drive people into substance addiction and abuse in the first place,” says Chlöe Swarbrick.