Woods MeganSecond ReadingHon Dr MEGAN WOODS (Minister of Housing): I move That the COVID-19 Public Health Response Amendment Bill be now read a second time. The COVID-19 Public Health Response Amendment Bill supports the public health response to COVID-19. The main purpose of the bill is to allow the Government to recover some of the costs of managed isolation and quarantine facilities through prescribing charges and regulations. There is a secondary purpose to reduce demand for managed isolation and quarantine from short-term travel. The bill places four requirements on the Minister responsible for the administration of the managed isolation and quarantine facilities before they can recommend the making of this regulation. The Minister must be satisfied that the prescribed charges relate to the direct and indirect costs incurred by the Government for managed isolation and quarantine facilities the charges recover no more than the estimated actual and reasonable direct and indirect costs of managed isolation and quarantine for the classes of persons being charged that there is appropriate provision to grant relief from payment and circumstances where payment would cause undue financial hardship and that the charges do not limit or are a justified limit on the rights and freedoms in the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990. These requirements ensure that the charges are reasonable proportionate and do not prevent New Zealanders returning to New Zealand.The bill sets out a range of methods by which the costs of managed isolation and quarantine could be recovered. It allows for different charges for different classes of people persons in different circumstances different types of facilities and different regions. These provisions provide flexibility in the future to use different types of facilities anywhere in New Zealand and will help ensure the charges reflect the estimated actual and reasonable costs. Under the bill certain people who arrive in New Zealand and who are required to or elect to be in managed isolation or quarantine will be liable to pay a charge unless they are exempt.The exemptions in the bill include diplomats and consular staff and their families and official foreign Government representatives. Further exemptions can be made through regulation. This allows the Government to exempt classes of people where it might not be appropriate to charge or where a class of people is likely to be in a position where they are experiencing financial hardship and are unable to pay charges.The bill also allows for regulations to enable the Minister or the chief executive of the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) to exempt waive or refund charges in part or in full. I consider waivers an important mechanism to assist anybody experiencing undue financial hardship or who is travelling because of other special circumstances such as for compassionate reasons.The bill also allows regulations to set the timing and manner of payment of the charges. It allows unpaid debts to be recovered through the courts if necessary. I intend for the regulations to allow for payment by instalment at the discretion of MBIE in cases of financial hardship. This type of payment arrangement would help people who might not be able to pay a lump sum upfront payment.In addition to the charging system the bill makes two amendments in relation to orders made by the Minister of Health or the Director-General of Health under section 11 of the principal Act. The first amendment allows the Minister or director-general to make orders that impose conditions on people arriving in New Zealand. These conditions could include being registered to enter managed isolation before entering New Zealand. The Government is currently working on a system to ensure that anyone coming here has an allocated space in a managed isolation facility. This change supports a coordinated and orderly public health response to COVID-19 and this ensures our managed isolation facilities are just that: managed.The second change clarifies that orders made under section 11 of the Act can require a person to undergo as well as report for a medical examination or testing. I also note that I have tabled a Supplementary Order Paper which makes minor and technical changes to the bill. All of these changes support this Government's public health strategy to stamp out COVID-19 and to protect our communities over the longer term through a sustainable managed isolation and quarantine system. I look forward to further discussion in the committee of the whole House stage and exploring with the Opposition the sentiment that was coming through from the last speaker Erica Stanford that we can't keep spending on these facilities. So I would like to know if there is a plan to no longer have managed isolation at our borders.