Investigating ‘everything to do with the pandemic’

NZ Royal Commission Covid-19 Lessons Learned commissioners John Whitehead, Hekia Parata and Professor Tony Blakely.Picture supplied

A Royal Commission seeking to strengthen the country’s response to future pandemics has paid an action-packed visit to Tairāwhiti.

Te Tira Ārai Uratā (NZ Royal Commission Covid-19 Lessons Learned) was in Gisborne last Thursday to hear feedback from key stakeholders.

Epidemiologist and public health specialist Professor Tony Blakely — one of three commissioners tasked with heading the inquiry —  said the commission’s meetings so far had been “incredibly productive”.

“We’re learning a lot, and that will help us with getting recommendations for Aotearoa New Zealand that will benefit the country in response to a future pandemic,” he said.

The visit to Tairāwhiti included meetings with iwi health providers, Gisborne District Council emergency response units, small businesses and education providers.

Instead of laying blame, the commission sought to find lessons from the past which could be applied to the future, he said.

It began earlier this year and has until  September 30,  2024 to report its findings.

“The actual substance of what we talk about remains confidential, but what I can share with you is the reason we do that (seek feedback) is so people can cut to the chase and say exactly what happened so that we can get our mahi done quicker.”

Prof Blakely said some feedback so far echoed what had been shared already: that in retrospect certain restrictions and measures went on for longer than they needed to, including the Auckland lockdown.

But the country did well as a whole and will be even better when the next pandemic arrives, he said.

Specific to Tairāwhiti, Prof Blakely said it would be good to explore how Māori can be better engaged earlier, with principle-led action specific to the region’s needs.

He  is travelling the country with fellow commissioners former National Cabinet Minister Hekia Parata and economist John Whitehead.

On top of stakeholder engagements, the commission is also undertaking public consultation and studying reports from Aotearoa and abroad.

Prof Blakely said the terms of reference were very broad to cover health, economy, social cohesion, borders and “basically everything to do with the Covid pandemic”.