NZSTA members, alongside the NZSTA Board and expert advisers, regularly advocate for people with communication and swallowing difficulties internationally and nationally.
If you are aware of other policy or legislative issues on which NZSTA could comment, please get in touch with the NZSTA executive director.
NZSTA collaborates with other allied health professions; joint submissions are available on the Allied Health Aotearoa New Zealand website.
Submissions include:
- 2024 Letter to Hon. Erika Stanford regarding the proposal for changes to the Education and Training Act
- 2024 NZSTA signed up as a signatory to the open letter to Christopher Luxon: Stop the Treaty Principles Bill
- 2024 National Cancer Research Network
- 2024 Health Select Committee Inquiry (aged care sector's capacity & neurological cognitive disorders)
- Oral submission on 18 September 2024 - watch the first ten minutes
- 2023 Adult Decision Making - Law Commission Review
- 2023 Therapeutic Products Bill
- 2022 OPEN LETTER: Continue work on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
- 2022 Accessibility for New Zealanders Bill
- 2021 Pūaotanga: An independent review of primary school
- 2020 Submission on the Education and Training Bill
- 2019 Health and Disability Services Standards Review
- 2019 System Health Quality & Safety Commission (HQSC) and Nutrition Technical Advisory Group submissions regarding IDDSI implementation at a national policy level
- 2018 The Importance of Speech, Language and Communication to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: A Summary of Evidence (International Communication Project)
- 2018 Ministry of Education Draft Action Plan
- 2018 Public Consultation on Telecommunications Relay Service
- 2018 RACP Consultation on AFRM Draft Policy Paper: Rehabilitation medicine physicians delivering integrated care in the community for stroke
- 2018 Bakels New Zealand – Colset starch thickener
- 2018 Ministry Briefing Communication Access – Meeting with Hon Carmel Sepuloni, Minister of Disability
- 2018 ESD for stroke public Consultation on Telecommunications Relay Services
- 2017 Medicine physicians delivering integrated care in the community
- 2017 Children, Young Persons, and Their Families (Oranga Tamariki) Legislation Bill
- 2017 Clinical Network for Paediatric Tube Feeding “Readiness Tool” for use in infants and children who are being tube fed”
- 2016 A good start in life: Develop policy options to improve government support for parents, family and whānau of disabled children aged 0-6 years
- 2016 Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Action Plan
- 2015 Captioning in New Zealand
- 2015 Parliamentary Inquiry into the identification and support for students with the significant challenges of dyslexia, dyspraxia, and autism spectrum disorders in primary and secondary schools
- 2013 National Health Committee position on Ventilation tubes for the treatment of otitis media
- 2012 Green Paper for Vulnerable Children
- 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2019 Pharmac funding for thickeners
- 2010 Health Passports
- 2010 Department of Labour Essential Skills in Demand List
- 2008 Changes to the IPRC Act – ACC Regs Consult
Submission Updates
*Therapeutic & Natural Products Bill- On 26 July 2023, the Therapeutic Products Bill received Royal assent, becoming the Therapeutic Products Act (2023).
- The coalition government coalition has declared it will repeal the Therapeutic Products Act 2023.
- The proposed repeal means that the legislation originally intended to be replaced by the Act – the Medicines Act 1981, the Dietary Supplements Regulations 1985 and Sunscreen (Product Safety Standard) Act 2022 – will remain in force.
*Accessibility for New Zealanders Bill
The Social Services and Community Committee has examined the Accessibility for
New Zealanders Bill, and a majority, recommended that it be passed.
NZSTA thought the Bill was flawed and needed more work.
Select Committee Oral Submissions
Member Sally Kedge, supported by Martin Nunn, made an oral submission to the select committee on the Accessibility for New Zealanders Bill.
You can find Sally and Martin's submission at 8.58 - 24.12 mins at this Facebook link below. (Should the link fail to load, copy and post the URL into your browser)