Covid 19 coronavirus: Start of new committee set to break drought on Government release of advice

Police Commissioner Mike Bush and Director General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield are among those who will speak to a new committee of MPs about the Government's response. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The modelling on the spread of Covid-19 that the Government is relying on will be released on Tuesday ahead of the first meeting of a special committee to scrutinise the Government's response to the pandemic.

That committee of 11 MPs from all parties will first question the head of the Covid-19 response team, John Ombler, Director General of Health Ashley Bloomfield, and Health Minister David Clark.

The meeting will be livestreamed on Parliament TV, as well as Parliament's website and Facebook page.

It will be chaired by National Party leader Simon Bridges and a majority of the 11 MPs are Opposition MPs - five National MPs and Act leader David Seymour.

It has the power to request ministers and top officials to appear, and will break the drought on the official advice the Government has been getting.

The modelling will be the first official information the Government has released so far – it has not yet released any official advice, or any Cabinet papers relating to its response.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern referred to the modelling when announcing New Zealand was going into lockdown, saying it showed that tens of thousands of people could die if steps were not taken.

While some of it is based on modelling that has already been made public, much was also prepared by the All of Government Covid-19 response team.

The committee was set up after Parliament was adjourned until late April as an alternative means to allow Opposition and wider Parliamentary scrutiny of the response.

Bridges said it was important there was robust scrutiny of the response, given it would affect future generations both in terms of lives and the economic impact.

"We are dealing with, and making decisions that will affect generations. The constructive scrutiny provided by this Committee will make our country's response to Covid-19 a better and stronger one."

Bridges said this week would focus on the health response on Tuesday, followed by the economic response on Wednesday with Finance Minister Grant Robertson and Treasury Secretary Caralee McLiesh appearing. Later in the week, it would question Police Commissioner Mike Bush, and the ministers and chief executives of Civil Defence and Customs.

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It will meet by video conferencing, and has the power to summon ministers and high-ranked officials leading the response.

It will be livestreamed onto Parliament TV, as well as Parliament's website www.parliament.nz/watch-erc or Parliament's Facebook page: www.facebook.com/nzparliament