Organ Donation: Canada $35 Million - NZ $0

Organ Donation: Canada $35 Million - NZ $0

Canada is the latest country to advance its organ donor system by announcing a $35 Million injection into a new organ donor register this week.

Recently, Australia announced a $141 million boost to improving their organ donor rate, with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd saying he wants to triple Australia's donor rate.

In stark contrast the New Zealand government admitted last month that not a single dollar has been spent on organ donation public awareness in more than six years and has no plans to in the future, despite New Zealand being at the bottom of the world in the rates of organ donation.

The government has also put on the back burner their 2005 pre election promise of an organ donor register.

'The government is going backwards when other countries are moving forwards when it comes to organ donation.' says Andy Tookey of GiveLife.

'They have consistently ignored the health Select Committee's recommendations for urgent action and won't introduce a register as they say there is no evidence that it will increase donor rates. Then we have all these other countries saying they do work and are prepared to invest in them. Who would we rather believe the countries that do well in donor rates that say they work, or New Zealand at the bottom of the world who say they don't?'

The organ donor figures for the first seven months of this year are the lowest this century, indicating that 2008 could be our worst on record.

In a recent letter to GiveLife the Associate Minister of Health has rejected ideas to help raise the organ donor rate.

'It is obvious that the government are not taking seriously that we have a major problem, and that many people will suffer and die as a consequence of their inaction.' Said Mr.Tookey.

ENDS

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