Tuiono TeanauTEANAU TUIONO (Green): Kia ora. Thank you Madam Speaker. It's good to be back here in the House. It's been a while for me actually and I kind of get the urgency around getting this sort of thing over the line. Parents around the House will know that with the borders being relatively closed over the last couple of years we're getting three years or two years or whatever it is worth of winter infections coming into our homes via our kids. So I understand the need to have a select committee process despite the urgency and I was just finding myself for once or twice in the history of my short time in the House agreeing with that corner: that it is actually really important to have that select committee process; that it's really important to have that transparency even if it is a shortened process as well; just to kick it around a little bit get stuff written on the record to make sure that when people go back and reflect on the decisions that we've made that there is some clarity around that. So it's good to see that and it's also good to see the relative ascension of Mr Tangi Utikere to the chair of the Health Committee as well. I'm not a frequent visitor to the Health Committee but I am always impressed by the number of doctors and health professionals at this Health Committee as well. I've just got a humble law degree like I think a fair number of us around here in the House as well. So to have that health expertise embedded into this select committee is a good thing. And I was just thinking what better person to wrangle all those doctors than a teacher and Mr Utikere—I can speak to him—he is a good teacher. He taught one of my kids and I have nothing but the utmost respect for all of the teachers that have had the fortune to teach my children. So the purpose of this bill is to allow for another COVID-19 booster. We are doing it through the legislative process as well. We are in the midst of a pandemic as well so it is important that we have some way to actually move this stuff forward. The bill would insert new section 34A into Part 2 of the Medicines Act which relates to medicines and medical devices. New section 34A would enable the Director-General of Health by notice to authorise the administration of a COVID-19 vaccine other than in accordance with the data sheet". The proposed amendment would enable the director-general to specify by notice one or more of the following: "(a) who the vaccine may be administered to: (b) the recommended number and frequency of doses: (c) the recommended manner of administration: (d) [and] any other circumstances" as well. As previous speakers have said before we got support both from oral submissions and written submissions and there were questions put to those submitters just to get that clarity from them that they saw that this was the process that we were going through because there is that Medsafe process there as well. But because of the situation that we're in let's ask the experts let's ask those submitters whether they thought this was the right process moving forward and they all said yes. I guess for me the bit on transparency is really important. What I have learnt and maybe what we all have learnt—hopefully we all have—is that we should trust the experts. We should trust the health experts those with the very specific expertise in those areas: epidemiologists microbiologists etc. I was just thinking you know if you get a plumber that comes into your house you trust them to fix the plumbing in the sink you don't then go and double question them and go on to YouTube and double check to see if they really know what they're talking about; you trust the expertise that they have. Starting off with that basis of trust is a really really important thing. So having this select committee process even though it was short was also quite important as well. I guess the other theme that keeps popping up for me when we talk about the COVID-19 response is the key element of communication. I was just reflecting on the report that came out last week about the Government's response to Delta and the lesson in there was around making sure that we allow those leaders in Māori and Pasifika communities and making sure that we centre the voices of our immunocompromised and disabled whānau as well. It would be good to have a line of sight from the sorts of things that we are deciding to do today but also moving forward as well. Things like a school plan because when I meet with teachers they are wondering "Well what's happening here?" We've got things that are impacting upon teachers and impacting on relief teachers disregarded sick leave and so on and so forth. So having that plan in place would be really important for them but also really important for their parents of which a number of us around the House are those parents. We've got a nice sharp short written submission from Te Rōpu Whakakaupapa Urutā. They said "Thank you for the opportunity to make a submission on the Medicines Amendment Bill (No 2). At our meeting last night we discussed the purpose of the amendment and agreed that the proposed amendment is sensible. It is pleasing to note this determination to improve access to COVID–19 vaccines for Māori and other New Zealanders. We are supportive of the amendment and are of the view that it will ease access to further COVID-9 vaccinations when and if required." And so if it's good enough for the good doctors then it's good enough for the Greens. Thank you Madam Speaker."