6. Question No. 6—HealthDr SHANE RETI (National—Whangarei) to the Minister of HealthQuestion No. 6—Health6. Dr SHANE RETI (National—Whangarei) to the Minister of Health: Was his management of PPE supplies during the coronavirus outbreak textbook" and how does that align with the report released by the Auditor-General regarding management of personal protective equipment?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK (Minister of Health): New Zealand's health response to the global pandemic has been world leading. The ministry welcomed the Auditor-General's review of personal protective equipment (PPE) which found "The Ministry moved quickly to set up a new centralised system for procuring prioritising and distributing PPE stock." and this appeared to work well. The ministry has confirmed it will implement the report's 10 recommendations with work on seven of them already under way.Dr Shane Reti: Given the report's observations was Ashley Bloomfield's comment accurate and correct when he said to Radio New Zealand at the time the outbreak was near its peak that PPE supplies are plentiful and steady and distribution is being made "rock solid"?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: I haven't seen the detail of that quote but obviously the system in the early stages had challenges. Anyone who reads that report will see that but the ministry did respond to those challenges and there is of course then that praise in the report for the ministry's response. Dr Shane Reti: How does he justify his statement on 7 May when he said that Ashley Bloomfield's stocktake report did identify some initial teething issues that have now been resolved when yesterday the Office of the Auditor-General identified ongoing problems?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: I think the statements speak for themselves. There are challenges in that supply. There is a globally competitive environment for PPE because COVID-19 is spreading at the fastest rate it has spread currently around the world. There is a global pandemic happening which is affecting supply chains around the world. Our response has been impressive in light of that global pandemic but of course there are always things we could do better and we are working hard to make sure that risks are minimised and New Zealand's safety is put first.Dr Shane Reti: Were the PPE issues not resolved then when on 7 May he said they were?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: Issues can be resolved before new issues arise. That's logical. And certainly the global situation continues to be challenging for securing PPE and other stocks necessary to combat a global pandemic.Dr Shane Reti: Does he agree with the findings of the Auditor-General that a degree of confusion appears to have arisen in relation to PPE; and if so does he believe his decision to produce 36 separate PPE guidance documents contributed to this?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: I believe that the report is right in saying that the ministry responded appropriately by setting up a new centralised system for prioritising allocating and distributing PPE stock and also that the ministry needed to act quickly to set up a centralised approach to managing national reserve stock levels ordering freight and distribution.Dr Shane Reti: If his management of PPE is part of the "textbook" response that he has stated in this House many times can he tell New Zealanders exactly which textbook he is referring to?Hon Dr DAVID CLARK: I would say firstly that management of the day-to-day operations is actually the responsibility of the Ministry of Health not as the member characterises and secondly I would say just how wrong he is. His references to "textbook" are all as far as I can find through the Hansard in response to his questions framing the response as "textbook". I don't know if he sees the irony in that. But I'll repeat to him a previous answer from the House: "If you can read any textbook it's liable to have a few challenges in it." and we've heard recently anecdotes of PPE in the early stages not getting to where they needed to go. That's why I'm seeking reassurance since we've stepped in to make sure that the system is working as it should."