Jacinda Ardern replies to boy who gave budget advice on beds for sick kids
15 May, 2021 05:00 PM
4 minutes to read
Cooper Sinclair wrote to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern about funding beds at Starship s PICU ward. Photo / Dean Purcell
Cooper Sinclair wrote to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern about funding beds at Starship s PICU ward. Photo / Dean Purcell
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has responded to an 11-year-old boy s letter urging more Government support for Auckland s children s hospital, Starship.
But the reply has left the kind-hearted boy with more questions than answers, while his mother has described the PM s response as disappointing .
Cooper Sinclair wrote to the Prime Minister with his own budgeting advice after his sick cousin Max had open heart surgery delayed five times because of a shortage of beds in the children s pediatric intensive ward (PICU) at Starship.
Cooper said the Starship story made him sad while the Parliament spend-up story made him mad because his 9-year-old cousin Max recently had his open heart surgery at Starship postponed five times because there weren t enough ICU beds. Max lives in Methven with his mum, dad and sister, Honor, so they have had to come up to Auckland and fly back to Christchurch each time the surgery was postponed. It was a really stressful time for all our family and I was worried, Cooper wrote. I know being a politician is important and you need office space and nice surroundings to work in but don t you think that children like my cousin Max are more important to New Zealand? If so, why don t you take $7 million from the Parliament building money and give it to Starship?