How We Will Work Te Āhua o Tā Mātou Mahi

Establishment

On 8 December 2022, the Government announced the appointment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry to look at the lessons learned from Aotearoa New Zealand’s response to COVID-19 that should be applied in preparation for any future pandemic.

On 25 June 2024, the Government announced a second phase of the Inquiry that would look at some new topics of public importance, as well as taking a more detailed look at some aspects of the response assessed in the Inquiry’s first report.

The Royal Commission is led by three Commissioners and supported by a Secretariat.

The Government has set the terms of reference for the overall Inquiry, including outlining our primary focus and providing guidance in terms of the way we operate and the procedures we follow.

The Phases of the Royal Commission

After the 2023 election, the coalition Government indicated that it intended to expand the terms of reference for the Royal Commission. The terms of reference set out details about how the Royal Commission will operate, like what topics it should investigate.

On behalf of the Government, the Royal Commission consulted with the New Zealand public on the proposed expansion of the terms of reference from 8 February to 24 March 2024.

The Minister of Internal Affairs announced on 25 June 2024 that the Royal Commission would be conducted in two phases. Phase One would cover the original terms of reference of the Royal Commission, and would produce a report and conclude on 28 November 2024.

Phase Two began accepting evidence from 29 November 2024, and is currently ongoing, led by new Commissioners and guided by the Phase Two terms of reference.

Our approach – Phase Two

Phase Two has been asked to assess key decisions made by the Government in regard to the COVID-19 response between February 2021 and October 2022.

A key decision is one made by the Government that had a significant impact on a large number of people or significant cost at a national or regional level (or both). 

Our focus will be on three main areas:

• Vaccines, including the use of mandates, the approval of vaccines, and vaccine safety
• Lockdowns, especially the national lockdown in August and September 2021 and the Auckland/Northland extended lockdown late 2021.
• Testing, tracing, and other public health tools, like RAT tests.

When reviewing these decisions, the Inquiry will consider potential lessons on how best to balance people’s health, social needs (including things like education and contact with friends and family) and economic impacts. The Inquiry will use the findings from this review to advise the Government on how Aotearoa New Zealand can prepare for and make decisions during a future pandemic.

The Inquiry will seek information and gather evidence in a variety of ways, including hearing from the public, reviewing publicly available information (including the Phase One report), and speaking with key decision-makers.

The Inquiry will, where possible, make Inquiry proceedings visible to the public. The Inquiry will make it easy for people to share their experiences with us.

Our engagement with key witnesses and decision makers will be formal in nature. For example, there will likely be interviews and public hearings.