When the frontline staff, their representatives, and the public are all saying the system is ‘falling to bits’ it’s hard to explain the minister’s stubbornness.

The minister can’t try to scapegoat the normal flu season when the very nature of the ‘season’ is it’s predictability - everyone knows that.

Little angrily lashing out at unions, GPs, private practices, and even Pharmac as being the problem is simply a recipe for failing to fix it - and makes the minister a liability.

The problem won’t be fixed with a split race-based health system - it will inevitably end in disaster - particularly when the problem is the minister won’t listen.

When she became PM she asked us to hold her govt to account. We are, and now it shows just how hollow that promise really was.