Expand mental health services

NationalKept

● Health7 tracked updates

✦ AI Overview

Pitched as a faster, more practical route to help for New Zealanders in distress, with a dedicated minister to drive it and community providers funded to do what the public system cannot.

The Policy: National Mental Health Innovation Fund — 2023 Election →

What it does:

Created New Zealand's first standalone Mental Health Minister (Matt Doocey), a role National campaigned on as a permanent voice for people with lived experience.
Set five mental health and addiction targets (announced 4 July 2024, to be met by 2030): 80% of people seen by specialist services within three weeks; 80% seen by primary Access and Choice services within one week; 95% of mental-health emergency-department visits resolved within six hours; 500 mental-health professionals trained a year; and 25% of mental-health investment directed to prevention and early intervention.
Funded Mike King's charity Gumboot Friday / I Am Hope with $24 million over four years ($6m a year) for free counselling for those aged 5-25, paid at $150 per session and capped at $500,000 a month - a commitment written into the National-NZ First coalition deal.
Launched a Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund of $10 million (matched, up to $1m per initiative a year) for NGOs - down from the "up to $20m" National floated before the election.

The result: On its own headline numbers the policy is largely delivering. By late 2025 Gumboot Friday had funded over 40,700 free sessions for more than 14,350 young people with 810 counsellors on its platform, and the access targets are being beaten - 82.2% specialist within three weeks and 83.7% primary within one week in early 2026, both above the 80% mark. But the gains sit against deep unmet need: 10.7% of adults could not get professional help for their mental health in 2023/24, up from 4.9% in 2016/17, rising to 16.2% of 25-34 year-olds. The Auditor-General John Ryan found the Gumboot Friday deal was awarded with "no opportunity for a fair, open, or competitive process", and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists said Budget 2024 left people with severe and complex illness unfunded and dropped a pre-election promise of 13 extra psychiatry registrar places.

The impacts to watch:

Severity gap: the new money is weighted to mild-to-moderate need and young people, while specialists warn acute and addiction services - the Access and Choice programme reached 207,000 people but is short of its 325,000 goal - remain stretched.
Regional inequality: the six-hour emergency-department target is being missed badly in places, with Capital and Coast at 35% and Counties Manukau at 45% against a national figure of 68.5%.
Value for money and evidence: critics question whether two short sessions and a single provider can be measured against genuine recovery, and whether the workforce exists to keep scaling.

This overview is summarised by AI from public sources. It may contain errors and is a guide, not the definitive record — we welcome corrections.

❓ Our Questions — you decide

Where our research raises a question the policy doesn't answer, we put it to you — these are our questions, not government policy. Your vote stays anonymous even when you sign up (we use sign-up only to send you more things to vote on that you care about), and we report aggregated results only — the country's sentiment, never how any individual voted.

Should more of the new mental health funding go to acute and addiction services for people with severe illness, even if that means less for milder needs and early support?

Given the auditor found the Gumboot Friday funding was awarded without a fair, open or competitive process, should large mental health contracts have to go through open competition?

Should government mental health contracts always go through an open, competitive tender?

Should more of the new mental health funding be directed to severe and complex illness rather than mild-to-moderate need?

Should free counselling come with a guaranteed minimum number of sessions for those who need it?

Key milestones

Nov 2023official

Coalition deal creates a Mental Health Minister and funds Gumboot Friday

National's coalition agreement with NZ First committed the new government to appointing New Zealand's first dedicated Mental Health Minister - a role taken by Matt Doocey - and to funding Mike King's Gumboot Friday charity. The agreement set aside $24 million over four years ($6 million a year) for free youth counselling, alongside National's campaign pledge of a Mental Health Innovation Fund for community providers.

Beehive - Hon Matt Doocey, Minister for Mental Health ↗

May 2024news

Psychiatrists say the Budget leaves severe illness behind

After Budget 2024, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists said there was no meaningful new funding for people with severe and complex mental illness and addiction. Dr Hiran Thabrew, chair of its New Zealand committee, said the system was in crisis and people were falling through the cracks, and noted a pre-election promise of 13 extra psychiatry registrar training places had not been funded.

RANZCP - No funding for severe mental illness in the Budget ↗

Jul 2024official

Five mental health targets and a $10m Innovation Fund announced

Minister Matt Doocey announced five public mental health and addiction targets to be met by 2030, including 80% of people seen by specialist services within three weeks and 80% seen by primary services within one week, plus training 500 professionals a year. He also launched a $10 million Community Sector Innovation Fund - half the $20 million National had floated before the election - on a matched-funding basis for NGOs.

Beehive - Announcement of Mental Health Targets and Innovation Fund ↗

Oct 2024news

Auditor-General faults the Gumboot Friday contract process

Auditor-General John Ryan found the way the $24 million Gumboot Friday contract was awarded gave no opportunity for a fair, open or competitive process, and that officials did not fully inform ministers of the risks. Reporting also questioned whether the charity could deliver the roughly 3,333 sessions a month needed to draw down the full funding, and whether enough counsellors were available.

The Spinoff - Can Gumboot Friday provide $24m worth of sessions? ↗

Nov 2025official

Gumboot Friday funding renewed as session numbers climb

The government reported that since funding began Gumboot Friday had delivered over 40,700 free counselling sessions, supported more than 14,350 young New Zealanders and grown its network to 810 counsellors, and renewed the contract with a 2025/26 goal of 40,000 sessions for up to 15,000 young people. Labour's Ingrid Leary continued to question the data and whether two short sessions met the needs of young people with complex problems.

Scoop - Gumboot Friday continuing to deliver results ↗

Jun 2026news

Access targets beaten, but emergency departments lag

New figures showed the government beating its main access targets - 82.2% of people seen by specialist services within three weeks and 83.7% by primary services within one week - but badly missing the six-hour emergency-department target in some regions, with Capital and Coast at 35% and Counties Manukau at 45% against a national 68.5%. AUT's Dr Jo Appleby said workforce roles were still hard to get approved and that mental health also needed action on housing and other social drivers.

NZ Herald - Government hitting most mental health targets but some regions lagging ↗

2026

Public reaction across platforms

Online reaction is split: strong public affection for Mike King and Gumboot Friday and relief at faster youth counselling, set against scepticism about value for money, the sole-source contract, and whether short bursts of counselling reach those with serious illness.

See the conversation:

Aggregated - individual posts are not cited.

Sources

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