9. Question No. 9—COVID-19 ResponseCHRIS BISHOP (National) to the Minister for COVID-19 ResponseQuestion No. 9—COVID-19 Response9. CHRIS BISHOP (National) to the Minister for COVID-19 Response: Did he receive a paper from the Ministry of Health dated 26 January 2021 outlining the initial delivery schedule of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and an 11-week roll-out schedule; if so why has New Zealand not cumulatively administered 390413 as stated at week seven?Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL (Associate Minister of Health) on behalf of the Minister for COVID-19 Response: My office received the document on 28 January. This was a draft early design plan which showed one scenario based on information available at the time. Specifically it shows three phases with delivery dates only available for phase 1 reflecting the first tranche of Pfizer vaccine doses we purchased. Since then we made a decision in February to purchase enough Pfizer to cover the population over 16 years of age meaning an additional 8.5 million doses. On the basis of that we also then received several updated delivery schedules from Pfizer. We then developed a roll-out model that consistently scaled the number of doses given per day over time until July when the majority of our stocks arrive. This means the model we operate to now differs substantially from the draft document in question. We also made decisions in February to change the sequencing framework to prioritise border workers and front-line health workers.Chris Bishop: Why when the Government has received over 450000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are we not even close to administering the 390000 the Ministry of Health outlined in January?Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL: I reject the notion that the document in question was a finalised plan. It was a draft. But let me be clear on what would happen if we pursued a roll-out at the speed the member is suggesting. We would have burnt out the stocks and we would now be closing down vaccination sites sending the staff back to their other jobs in the DHB in order—[Interruption]SPEAKER: Order! Order! No the Minister will resume her seat. I'm just going to ask people to turn the volume down on my left so I can hear the answer. Can I also make—I don't know if I'm meant to make this sort of suggestion. I think if the Minister put her pen down it wouldn't wind them up in quite the same way.Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL: We will be delivering this vaccine roll-out in a sustainable way with an incremental increase over time until the stocks arrive in July.Chris Bishop: Why when the Government is in possession of an additional 225000 doses more than the ministry knew it would have when it provided the advice in January are we nowhere near the 390000 doses it said should be administered in week seven?Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL: As I mentioned in my previous answer we need to gradually and sustainably scale up the number of doses delivered over time so that we don't need to unroll the vaccination programme we are rolling out.Chris Bishop: Why did the vaccination dashboard released yesterday not publish the weekly targets into the future of how many doses of the COVID-19 vaccine would be administered when the Minister has been receiving numbers as early as January on this?Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL: The ministry has published an outline of the model which reflects the doses to be delivered in the future.Chris Bishop: On that model will the Government publish the underlying data from the spreadsheet that goes into the graph that the ministry has released so that New Zealanders can assess for themselves how many doses will be administered in every week?Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL: The spreadsheet of the number of doses delivered per week was added to the ministry website last night.Hon Dr Nick Smith: That doesn't address the question.SPEAKER: Order! Order! I'm going to ask the member to repeat his question and I'm going to ask Dr Nick Smith to stop trying to chair the House from that seat.Chris Bishop: Well it was a bit off the cuff so this may not be it.SPEAKER: Well the question was essentially will the Government publish the underlying data from the spreadsheet.Chris Bishop: I can ask it again but OK.SPEAKER: Well I can remember what the member said.Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL: So the ministry has published an outline of the model that will show our progress towards scaling up towards the end of the year and we consistently provide weekly updates of our progress against targets.Chris Bishop: Why has the border worker announced at 1 o'clock today as—[Interruption]SPEAKER: Order! Order! Can the members from two parties down the back just behave themselves and be quiet please.Chris Bishop: Why has the border worker announced at 1 o'clock today as contracting COVID-19 not yet received any doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and what are the logistic issues the Director-General of Health indicated were the reasons he has not yet been vaccinated?Hon Grant Robertson: Point of order Mr Speaker. The question on notice covers a specific document and a schedule of vaccinations and I don't believe that question flows on from that matter.Chris Bishop: Speaking to the point of order.SPEAKER: Well speaking to the point of order—the member can table my note if he wants to.Chris Bishop: Well I accept on the first clause of the question but I think the second clause of the primary around the administration of COVID-19 vaccines brings it within the scope.SPEAKER: And that was my ruling when I made a decision on an urgent question: that it could be incorporated within supplementaries to this question. The primary question is just wide enough. And for the Government's information in case anyone is still counting because of the urgency of the situation I granted the Opposition an additional supplementary question in order to cover that off.Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL: The investigation into this case is under way and indeed that will be a question that we are asking. We continue to progress vaccination of border workers. We have achieved high levels of vaccination in the border workforce—over 17000 people—and we now have a small number with whom we are having conversations about redeployment.Chris Bishop: How many front-line border workers are yet to receive the COVID-19 vaccine?Hon Dr AYESHA VERRALL: I'm very happy for the member to put that question in writing to my office and we'll provide the answer.