‘Time is now’: Ardern announces royal commission into Covid
A royal commission of inquiry into New Zealand’s management of Covid19 will take place with the intention of preparing for future pandemics, the Government has announced.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern yesterday confirmed the inquiry would be chaired by Australia-based epidemiologist Professor Tony Blakely alongside former National Party minister Hekia Parata and former Treasury secretary John Whitehead.
Covid-19 Response Minister Dr Ayesha Verrall appeared with Ardern to address media on the royal commission of inquiry.
The investigation would begin considering evidence from February 1, 2023, and the report must be delivered by June 26, 2024.
The purpose of the inquiry was to “strengthen Aotearoa New Zealand’s preparedness for, and response to, any future pandemic by identifying those lessons learned from New Zealand’s response to Covid-19”, according to a summary of the inquiry’s terms of reference approved yesterday by Cabinet.
The inquiry’s scope included the “legislative, regulatory, and operational settings” necessary to support New Zealand’s public health response, the communication and engagement with people and communities to act in support of public health outcomes and the settings needed to ensure the continued supply of goods and services required to enable people to isolate or otherwise take protective measures.
Also included were the settings required to support the country’s immediate economic response to a future pandemic, the decisionmaking structures to be used during an extended pandemic, consideration of Māori interests consistent with the Te Tiriti o Waitangi and consideration of the impact on essential workers, populations and communities that may be disproportionally impacted by a pandemic.
There were several aspects considered not within the inquiry’s scope, including clinical decisions made by clinicians or public health authorities during the Covid-19 pandemic, how and when measures in response to Covid-19 were implemented in particular situations and vaccine efficacy.
It would also not analyse particular decisions taken by the Reserve Bank’s independent monetary policy committee during the Covid-19 pandemic.
When asked why the Reserve Bank was excluded from the inquiry, Ardern said monetary policy was included generally but the Bank’s independent committee wasn’t in scope.
Ardern said the scope of the inquiry was “wide-ranging” including the border, community care, and quarantine, among other aspects.
The elimination strategy would also be analysed.
The inquiry would consider the “strategies, settings, and measures” that were in place between February 2020 and October 2022.
“It had been over 100 years since we experienced a pandemic of this scale, so it’s critical we compile what worked and what we can learn from it should it ever happen again,” Ardern said.
“A royal commission of inquiry is the highest form of public inquiry and is the right thing to do, given the Covid-19 emergency was the most significant threat to the health of New Zealanders and our economy since World War II.”
Ardern said when it came to individual decision-making that came down to a personal level, that would not be included because it needed to be learned broadly what worked and what didn’t to take those lessons into the response of a future pandemic.
Ardern stated New Zealand’s response has been thoroughly scrutinised, claiming 75 reviews on various aspects of the response had been conducted since 2020.
“That time is now”, Ardern said about the need for an inquiry.
Internal Affairs Minister Jan Tinetti lauded Professor Tony Blakely’s “extensive” understanding of public health in her praise of the team leading the inquiry.
“[Blakely] has the knowledge and experience necessary to lead this work.
“Hekia Parata and John Whitehead will add expertise and bring useful perspectives on the economic response and the response for Māori,” she said.
[Blakely] has the knowledge and experience necessary to lead this work. Hekia Parata and John Whitehead will add expertise and bring useful perspectives on the economic response and the response for Māori.
Internal Affairs Minister Jan Tinetti