BEB Meeting Minutes.pdf

MINUTES
3pm – 4pm, Thursday, 06 May 2021
Held at MPI, Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen Street
Present: Christine Stevenson (Chair, NZ Customs), Ashley Bloomfield (MoH), Carolyn
Tremain (MBIE), Chris Seed (MFAT), Peter Mersi (MoT), Ray Smith (MPI)
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Apologies: Cheryl Barnes (DPMC)
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In attendance: {Brent Johnston (MoT), Nigel Clifford (Maritime), Mike Hill (CAA)} – Item 3,
{Sue Gordon (MoH), Darryl Carpenter (MoH)} – Item 4, Michael Papesch (Customs), Sarah
Holland (BEB), Sonia Mani (BEB)
Item 1: Welcome, apologies, meeting context
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1. The Chair welcomed members to the meeting.
Item 2: Minutes and action items
2. The minutes from the meeting of 22 April 2021 were taken to be an accurate record.
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Item 3: COVID-19 vaccination requirements for the broader border sector
3. MoT  (with  CAA  and  Maritime  in  attendance)  provided  an  overview  of  advice  about
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expanding  mandatory  vaccination  requirements  to  additional  private  and  public  sector
workers who perform specified work at the border. During discussion, the Board noted that
it  was  a  complex  topic;  if  the  addition  of  further  groups  was  conceived  as  layers  in  an
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onion, the public health risk decreased with distance from the core.
4. The  Secretary  of  Transport  noted  the  potential  for  operational  disruption,  including  the
worst case of a port closure, if certain workers were included in a mandatory order.
5. MBIE noted the redeployment of some unvaccinated Managed Isolation and Quarantine
workers still posed challenges, including some requiring urgent resolution.
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6. The  Board  requested  that  the  briefing  be  re-organised,  with  a  tighter  front  section  and
clearer recommendations that focus on the key policy decisions being sought. The Board
agreed that the fundamental options were largely extant; these should start with a small(er)
group of workers and then extend. It was important to make the implications, along with
the complexity and variability of the workforce clearer.
7. Action:  MoT  to  work  with  MoH  (in  consultation  with  other  agencies)  to  reorganise  the
‘COVID-19 vaccination requirements at the border (Tranche 2 advice)’ paper with a tighter
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front section and clearer recommendations that focus on the key policy decisions being
sought.
8.  The redrafted paper was expected to be submitted to Ministers by Tuesday 11 May 2021.
9.  The Board acknowledged the long hours that had been put in by Brent Johnston and other
officials to draft the paper.
Item 4: Border Workforce Testing Register (BWTR)
10. MoH provided an update on the status and functionality of the BWTR, which includes the
monitoring and reporting of the testing and vaccination records of all border workers. A
substantial  body  of  work  has  been  undertaken  across  agencies  to  implement  the
mandatory use of the BWTR for all affected PCBUs (Persons Conducting a Business or
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Undertaking).
11. MoH  reported  that  phased  implementation  was  planned,  with  onboarding  of  PCBUs
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underway and PCBUs now able to view status for most workers, with manual workarounds
for remainder.
12. DG Health invited feedback from agencies using the BWTR. MoH reiterated the need for
organisations  to  provide  quality  data  in  the  format  prescribed  by  the  BWTR  system
requirements.
13. MoH  noted  that  a  Border  Testing  Governance  Group  (Customs,  Transport,  WorkSafe,
MBIE, MPI, DPMC, Maritime NZ and Health) had been established to oversee the BWTR
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implementation and a Testing Compliance Operational (working) Group was in place (with
initial membership of WorkSafe, MBIE and Health, and other agencies to be included).
14. MoH raised the question on how best to provide ongoing reporting of BWTR results and
progress to Ministers and the Board. The Board agreed it was appropriate to bring plans
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and issues to the BEB until the BWTR system and implementation had stabilised.
15. Board members raised a number of questions about the current functionality of the BWTR
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and discussed potential issues such as inability to download data and the implications of
features such as staff alerts that did not take into account the 48-hour lag between a test
being taken and being shown in the BWTR. Various reasons for this delay were noted and
discussed  with  an  agreement  to  find  reasonable  solutions  and  workarounds  to  help
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smoothen the PCBU and staff experiences of the BWTR system.
16. Action: Agencies to provide BWTR usability feedback to MoH to enable the resolution of
system usability issues and improve staff experience in further BWTR system iterations.
17. Acknowledging that the system was unlikely to function perfectly by 14 May 2021, Board
members  agreed  it  would  be  beneficial  to  have  any  key  variances  (such  as  system
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workarounds  and  data  challenges)  documented  clearly  for  Ministers  so  that  their
immediate expectations from the BWTR system are realistic and positive.
18. MoH  noted  it  would  come  back  to  BEB  with  a  full  implementation  plan  for  all  forms  of
testing (including the soon-to-be introduced saliva testing) for border workers.
19. Action: MoH to come back to BEB with a full BWTR implementation plan for all forms of
testing (including the soon-to-be introduced saliva testing).

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Item 5: Advice on future Quarantine Free Travel (air and maritime)
20. Agencies are working on two separate pieces of advice
a.  Maritime quarantine free travel (commercial, cruise and small craft) – lead is MoH.
This is expected to be discussed at the 13 May BEB meeting.
b.  An  expansion  of  QFT  into  the  Pacific  and  beyond  -  led  by  DPMC’s  COVID-19
Group.
21. Board members discussed the need to keep an eye on shifting arrangements in Australia
and in the Pacific, given the dynamically evolving COVID-19 situation around the world.
Item 6: QFT rapid review
22. The Chair noted she had commissioned a light-touch review of the QFT arrangements to
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date.
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Item 7: Other issues and priorities
23. MoH thanked Customs and other border agencies for the work being done to manage and
provide  advice  to  inbound  QFT  travellers  impacted  by  the  latest  community  case  in
Australia.
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MINUTES
3pm – 4pm, Thursday, 13 May 2021
Held at Customhouse, Harbour Quays, Hinemoa Street
Present: Christine Stevenson (Chair, NZ Customs), Ashley Bloomfield (MoH), Catriona
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Robinson (MBIE) for Carolyn Tremain (MBIE), Chris Seed (MFAT), Peter Mersi (MoT), Vince
Arbuckle (MPI) for Ray Smith (MPI)
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Apologies: Carolyn Tremain (MBIE), Ray Smith (MPI)
In attendance: Cheryl Barnes (DPMC), Sarah Holland (BEB), Sonia Mani (BEB), Bev
Driscoll (MoT) – Item 3, {Annie Hindle (MoH), Stuart Beresford (MoH)} – Item 4, {Ruth
Fairhall (DPMC), Griere Cox (DPMC)} – Item 5,

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Item 1: Welcome, apologies, meeting context
1.  The Chair welcomed members to the meeting.
Item 2: Minutes and action items
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2.  The minutes from the meeting of 06 May 2021 were taken to be an accurate record.
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Item 3: Travel Health Pass work programme update
3.  MoT gave an overview of the latest developments in the Travel Health Pass programme,
noting  that  the  programme  was  being  scoped  to  ensure  feasibility  while  still  connecting
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with relevant pieces of work that would inform and the impact the design of the programme.
4.  The  Interagency  Working  Group  leading  the  Travel  Health  Pass  programme  had
established  a  technical  group,  facilitated  by  Customs,  to  operationalise  policies,  and
consider business and functional requirements, legal requirements, and the benefits and
costs of various related approaches. The Interagency Working Group was would continue
to work as the clearing house for key policy and operational issues.
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5.  The  Chair  raised  the  question  of  funding  and  resourcing  arrangements  that  would  be
required  to  support  the  work  and  suggested  these  should  be  prioritised  as  soon  as
programme scoping was complete.
6.  Members  also  discussed  the  importance  of  correlating  the  work  with  international
standards being developed in the vaccine certification space (such as by IATA, WHO and
countries such as Singapore) and keeping closely informed and connected with relevant
initiatives.

7.  In  their  next  report  back  to  BEB,  MoT  agreed  to  provide  an  overview  of  the  various
components of their work, including who was leading which parts.
8.  The Board also suggested the Travel Health Pass overview be shared with the COVID-19
CE’s Board to assure them that border agencies are progressing with gap analyses related
to safe and efficient passenger travel facilitation and are keeping abreast of the dynamic
vaccine standardisation situation.
9.  Action:  MoT  to  share  the  Travel  Health  Pass  overview  documentation  with  the  COVID
CE’s Board.
10. The Board thanked MoT and other agency colleagues for their continued efforts.
Item 4: Maritime Quarantine-Free Travel (QFT)
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s9(2)(f)(iv) OIA, s9(2)(g)(i) OIA


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Item 5: Reconnecting with the world – Pacific and broader QFT
17. DPMC noted that the Prime Minister was keen to take a strong lead on the reconnecting
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with the world programme.
18. s 6(a) OIA




19. s 6(a) OIA

20. Board members noted the need to be alert to implications if a QFT partner opened up to
additional countries.
Item 6: Other issues and priorities
21. MoT and MoH noted the rework of the ‘COVID-19 vaccination requirements at the border
(Tranche 2 advice)’ paper for Minister Hipkins. Agencies are awaiting decisions from
Ministers.
22. Action: BEB Secretariat to send the Venter Aviation Review Report to all members ahead
of the imminent proactive public release of the report.

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MINUTES
3pm – 4pm, Thursday, 27 May 2021
Held at MPI, Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen Street
Present: Christine Stevenson (Chair, NZ Customs), Ashley Bloomfield (MoH), Carolyn
Tremain (MBIE), Chris Seed (MFAT), Karl Simpson (MoT) for Peter Mersi (MoT), Ray Smith
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(MPI)
Apologies: Peter Mersi (MoT)
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In attendance: Bryre Patchell (Customs) – Item 3, Darryl Carpenter (MoH) – Item 4, Cheryl
Barnes (DPMC), Sarah Holland (BEB), Sonia Mani (BEB)
Item 1: Welcome, apologies, meeting context
1.  The Chair welcomed members to the meeting.
Item 2: Minutes and action items
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2.  The minutes from the meeting of 13 May 2021 were taken to be an accurate record.
3.  The  following  BEB  actions  were  closed:  #06  &  #10  (MoH  IPC  assurance  plan  of
international airports and seaports progressing well); #32 (MoT shared Travel Health Pass
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documentation  with  COVID  CEs  Board);  #33  (Updated  Maritime  QFT  briefing  paper
delivered to Minister’s office); #34 (Venter Aviation Review Report sent to BEB members
ahead of the imminent proactive public release).
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Item 3: Digital border programme
4.  Customs  (in  association  with  MPI  and  MBIE)  gave  an  overview  of  the  Digital  Border
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Programme,  noting  active  collaboration  between  the  three  agencies  (key  components
being digital declaration, RTT scanning and passenger risk assessment)
5.  BEB agreed to the establishment of a Digital Borders Steering Committee as described in
the Terms of Reference and Programme Brief, noting that Penny Nelson (MPI) was the
overall project sponsor and that she would be working closely with Bill Perry (NZCS). BEB
reinforced the importance of minimising duplication between the work streams, and of the
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use of applying sound project management practices.
6.  Action: MoT to involve senior officials from AVSEC and CAA in upcoming work related to
the Digital Border Programme.
7.  Action:  The  Digital  Border  Steering  Committee  to  report  back  to  the  Border  Executive
Board by 30 September 2021 with an estimated cost and work programmes to enable a
decision on long term funding.
Item 4: Border Workforce Testing Register (BWTR) update

8.  MoH provided an overview of the current state of the Border Workforce Testing Register
(BWTR), highlighting recent upgrades to improve the usability of the BWTR system and
their  continued  efforts  to  work  collectively  with  agencies  and  users  to  resolve  data
gathering and cleansing issues, with the aim to achieve increasing compliance with testing
requirements.
9.  BEB asked to receive the BWTR dashboard on a weekly basis, accompanied by a brief
one-page  memo  that  provided  an  additional  layer  of  analysis  to  highlight  compliance
issues and key risks and concerns for that week.
10. The Chair noted that it will be beneficial for BEB and agencies to be able to access both
Vaccination- as well as Testing- related data.
11. s 9(2)(f)(iv) OIA

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12. MoH highlighted proposals to ‘age off’ some data due to the progression of time, in order
that  inaccuracies  related  to  the  previous  baseline  (shown  by  the  red  line  on  the  BWTR
dashboard) could be cleansed out.
13. Board  members  raised  some  questions  about  the  implementation  of  upcoming  saliva
testing and stressed the need for governance over the operationalisation of this additional
layer of testing at the border (including aspects such as the frequency of testing, monitoring
processes etc).
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14. The Board expressed a strong desire for this additional layer of testing to be integrated
with  the  current  nasopharyngeal  testing  requirements  being  monitored  and  reported  on
the BWTR. MoH has a current action to revert to BEB with a full BWTR implementation
plan for all forms of testing (including saliva testing).
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Item 5: Other issues and priorities
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a.  Timeframe extension for Venter reviews: The Board:
i.  endorsed that the final report for Phase One of the Rapid Review of Border
Worker  Testing  (MIQ)  will  be  delivered  by  14  June  2021  instead  of  the
original date of 24 May 2021
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ii.  noted that the date for Phase Two of the Rapid Review of Border Worker
Testing  will  be  confirmed  when  Phase  One  is  complete  (no  change  to
original intent)
iii.  endorsed an extension to the deliverable dates for the Review of Border
Measures Tranche 2 – Maritime (currently a draft report 8 June 2021 and
final report 30 June 2021), noting new dates are pending.
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b.  BEB administrative delegations: The Board:
i.  agreed that the Border Executive Board delegate the power to enter into
contracts on behalf of the Board to the Chair of the Board
ii.  agreed that the Border Executive Board will delegate administrative tasks
and functions to the Chief Executive of its servicing department, the New
Zealand Customs Service
iii.  agreed that as part of the delegation proposed in 2.2, the Chief Executive
of  the  New  Zealand  Customs  Service  may  sub-delegate  financial  and

people  and  capability  delegations  in  accordance  with  the  hierarchies  set
out in Customs delegation policies
iv.  noted formal delegation instruments, and further advice, will be provided in
the near future for approval.
c.  Nomination for PSC awards: The Board agreed to endorse the submission of the
Spirit of Service Awards entry, noting some minor changes in the language of the
submission. The Board agreed that the submission for this award recognised the
tremendous  efforts  of  the  team  of  25,000  border,  transport  and  health  sector
workers  who  have  carried  the  load  to  keep  NZ  safe,  and  many  of  who  have
continued  to  work  at  Alert  Level  4,  putting  themselves  at  risk  for  other  New
Zealanders.
d.  BEB minutes requested by Audit NZ: The Chair informed members of Audit NZ’s
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request for BEB meeting minutes, noting the request was made as part of regular
Customs audit processes.
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e.  Border vaccination second doses: The Chair noted that some proportion of the
border  workforce  (MIQ,  in  particular)  were  still  awaiting  their  second  dose  of
vaccination before 5 June.
f.  Expansion of border worker mandatory vaccination: Members discussed the
proposed  expansion  of  the  vaccination  order,  noting  that  a  draft  paper  was
expected to be ready on Tuesday, with advice due with Vaccination Ministers by
Thursday  (3  June).  s 9(2)(f)(iv) OIA

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MINUTES
3pm – 4pm, Thursday, 03 June 2021
Held at MPI, Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen Street
Present: Christine Stevenson (Chair, NZ Customs), Ashley Bloomfield (MoH), Carolyn
Tremain (MBIE), Peter Mersi (MoT), Ray Smith (MPI)
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Apologies: Chris Seed (MFAT),
In attendance: Jamie Bamford (Customs) – Item 3, {Bev Driscoll (MoT), Matt Black
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(Customs)} – Item 4, Karl Simpson (MoT), Sarah Holland (BEB), Sonia Mani (BEB)

Item 1: Welcome, apologies, meeting context
1.  The Chair welcomed members to the meeting.
Item 2: Minutes and action items
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2.  The minutes from the meeting of 27 May 2021 were taken to be an accurate record.
3.  The following BEB actions were closed: #19 (Updated BEB work programme presented
as  part  of  the  Systems  Improvements  programme  overview  update);  #35  (MoT  has
included senior officials from AVSEC and CAA in the Digital Border and other Systems
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Improvement  programmes);  #36  (Report  back  from  the  Digital  Border  programme  has
been added to the BEB forward agenda).
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Item 3: Systems Improvements – Programme update
4.  Jamie Bamford (as the lead of the Systems Improvements programme) gave an overview
of  the  structure  of  the  work  programme  and  showed  how  the  work  under  the  Systems
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Improvement pillar fitted into the BEB’s overall work programme.
5.  Draft diagrams were presented to depict the key components of the work, who from various
agencies was expected to oversee/lead each component (at both DCE and project levels),
and what the indicative high level delivery schedule of this work looked like.
6.  The intent of the Systems Improvements programme was to provide BEB members with
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sector visibility around how the programme was shaping up, optimise coordination efforts
across  agencies,  and  minimise  duplication  of  work  across  some  of  the  related  work
streams.
7.  Action:  As  per  BEB  feedback,  Customs  to  include  Maritime  NZ  in  the  Systems
Improvements coordination DCEs group.
8.  MoH noted that the future-focussed systems work was timely in preparation for an ongoing
health presence at the border and in continuing to maintain our elimination status even
after we reopen our border. The Health System Reform potentially provided opportunities.

9. Members discussed the importance of leveraging existing systems and developing data
interlinkages to maximise the use of investment that has already been made.
10. The Chair expressed her appreciation for the representation from all agencies on this
work programme, which she acknowledged was over and above their existing work
commitments and pressures.
Item 4: Travel Health Pass update
11. MoT (in association with Customs and other BEB agencies) provided an update of
progress being made on the Travel Health Pass programme of work, noting that the work
now included outbound as well as inbound travel, and was connected and aligned with
related concurrent developments such as the national vaccination rollout and with the
standard-setting work of authorities such as the IATA and other international bodies.
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12. The Chair highlighted the importance of working closely with Air New Zealand to build
early understanding of expectations, noting the airline was scheduled to come and talk to
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the Board about this in early July.
13. s 9(2)(f)(iv) OIA

14. The Chair thanked the Travel Health Pass team for their work. The team will provide to
regular reports back to the Board.
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Item 5: COVID-19 end-to-end risk and assurance framework
15. Sarah Holland presented a draft COVID-19 risk and assurance framework for BEB,
noting that while officials from all BEB agencies had been involved in developing the
framework, the details of the framework needed to be further tested and refined.
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16. The Board agreed to the COVID risk and assurance framework, noting that this will be
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developed as part of an iterative improvement process.
17. Members directed that the scope of BEB’s accountabilities be further developed. The
shared and individual accountabilities needed to be better understood and clarified, and
it was important to have clear boundaries in the Board’s mandate (what they were and
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were not responsible for).
18. They also commented on how some of the risks previously identified had turned into
issues, and how this may need to be reflected in an issues and risks register.
Item 6: Implementation of recommendations from COVID-19 aviation review
19. Sarah Holland provided a summary of the progress to date on the recommendations
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from the “Review of COVID-19 Border Measures – Tranche One (Aviation),” seeking
BEB’s guidance on a draft risk framework.
20. Members commented on elements of the risk analysis, noting some elements were
outside the sphere of BEB’s influence and hence would need to be considered out of
BEB’s scope.
21. Member suggested that a reduction in the details and clear correlation with the BEB
essential mandate will make the framework easer to monitor and review.

22. s 9(2)(f)(iv) OIA


23. Action: The BEB asked MoT to organise a future session on what is reasonable to expect
an airline to do in relation to New Zealand’s COVID-19 risk.
Item 7: Pre-departure testing assurance
24. The  BEB  accepted  the  “Effectiveness  of  pre-departure  testing”  report  from  MoH  as
assurance that adequately robust processes and procedures were in place to check pre-
departure test documents, and that MoH was continuing to work with other agencies to
improve access to data on departure country and access routes.
Item 8: Other issues and priorities
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25. The Chair commented on the Border Workforce Testing Register (BWTR) report received
by members that day, noting it was a useful ongoing status indicator.
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26. Further advice on expanding the Vaccinations Order, specifically in relation to workers who
handle affected items, was due to be finalised that day.
27. Action: MoH to recommend updated Vaccination Order comes into effect ‘x’ weeks from
the date the amended Order is gazetted (rather than a set date, such as 30 September).

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MINUTES
3pm – 4pm, Thursday, 10 June 2021
Held at MPI, Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen Street
Present: Christine Stevenson (Chair, NZ Customs), Ashley Bloomfield (MoH), Megan Main
(MBIE) for Carolyn Tremain (MBIE), Peter Mersi (MoT), Ray Smith (MPI)
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Apologies: Carolyn Tremain (MBIE), Chris Seed (MFAT)
In attendance: Sue Gordon (MoH), Cheryl Barnes (DPMC), Sarah Holland (BEB), Sonia
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Mani (BEB), Wendy Venter (Venter Consulting Ltd) – Item 3, {Danny Tsai (MoT), Nicholas
Baldwyn (Customs)} – Item 4

Item 1: Welcome, apologies, meeting context
1.  The Chair welcomed members to the meeting.
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Item 2: Minutes and action items
2.  The minutes from the meeting of 03 June 2021 were taken to be an accurate record.
3.  The following BEB actions were closed: #39 (Updated Vaccination Order has been
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recommended to come into effect ‘x’ weeks from the date the amended Order is
gazetted).
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Item 3: Draft report of the rapid review of border worker testing (MIQ phase)
4.  Wendy Venter gave an overview of her key findings from the first phase (MIQ) of her rapid
review of border worker testing arrangements, noting that the focus of the review was to
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assess  the  sufficiency  of  current  and  planned  arrangements  and  provide
recommendations on what could be further improved.
5.  This review covered the first phase of the review which focused on testing arrangements
at Managed Isolation and Quarantine Facilities (MIQF).
6.  Sue  Gordon  (MoH)  noted  that  the  review  provided  a  useful  narrative,  highlighting  the
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transition from voluntary to mandatory requirements in the border testing regime, and the
governance  arrangements  that  had  been  required  to  facilitate  that  transition.  Sue  also
noted minor feedback on stressing the importance of providing good quality testing data.
7.  Megan  Main  (MBIE-MIQ)  agreed  on  the  usefulness  of  the  review,  noting  the  need  to
highlight the complexity of the situation that existed at the time of review, and the need to
denote owners for specific recommendations from the review.
8.  Members  discussed  the  longer-term  role  of  the  Border  Workforce  Testing  Register
(BWTR) system in light of the changing context of testing requirements, noting the need

for  compliance  monitoring  as  well  as  helping  people  comply  with  the  dynamic
requirements.
9.  Action: BEB feedback, including the nomination of owners for specific recommendations,
to be incorporated into the final report of the rapid review of border worker testing.
Item 4: Financial Sustainability – Updated passenger volume scenarios
10. MoT and Customs (in association with MPI, MBIE, and Treasury) provided an overview of
updated  passenger  volume  scenarios,  based  on  the  QFT  (Quarantine  Free  Travel)
commencement in April 2021.
11. The BEB agreed that the ‘moderate’ scenario should be used as the basis for performance
and planning activities of border and transport agencies and invited officials to report back
in six months’ time with updated scenarios.
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12. Members  noted  that  the  cruise  scenarios  remained  largely  unchanged,  while  the  cargo
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scenarios appeared to be more optimistic than was expected to remain in the near future.
13. Action:  The  scenarios  modelling  team  to  confirm  the  cargo  scenarios  after  gathering
additional data to inform those predictions.
s 9(2)(b)(ii) OIA
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Item 6: Other issues and priorities
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16. The Chair noted health and safety concerns with five near misses recently recorded at a
regional  port. Communication  efforts  had  been  initiated  to  address  these concerns with
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17. The Chair announced the appointment of Fiona McKissock as the permanent BEB
Executive Director. Fiona was expected to start in her new role in a month’s time.
Extension of the Vaccinations Order
18. Members  discussed  challenges  in  supporting  the  implementation  of  the  proposed
expansion of the Vaccinations Order. These included understanding what additional work
could only be completed by a vaccinated worker and the need to work closely with private
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sector organisations.
19. The Chair summarised the work streams underway.  BEB emphasised the importance of
engagement and communications, including with unions and PCBUs. It identified that work
would  need  to  be  undertaken  on  the  exceptions  and  exemptions  process  and
recommended that the amended Order included a review date. The BEB recognised the
need  to  appoint  an  overall  coordinator  and  noted  that  Public  Service  Commission  had
been asked to help identify a suitable person.

MINUTES
3pm – 4pm, Thursday, 17 June 2021
Held at MPI, Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen Street
Present: Christine Stevenson (Chair, NZ Customs), Sue Gordon (MoH) for Ashley 1982
Bloomfield (MoH), Megan Main (MBIE) for Carolyn Tremain (MBIE), Karl Simpson (MoT) for
Peter Mersi (MoT), David Wansbrough (MPI) for Ray Smith (MPI)
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Apologies: Ashley Bloomfield (MoH), Carolyn Tremain (MBIE), Chris Seed (MFAT), Ray
Smith (MPI)
In attendance: Cheryl Barnes (DPMC), Sarah Holland (BEB), Sonia Mani (BEB), {Erin
Polaczuk (PSA), Tracy Klenner (PSA), Charlie Busby (PSC)} – Item 3, {Catriona Robinson
(MBIE), Siobhan Halepennington (Customs)} – Item 4

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Item 1: Welcome, apologies, meeting context
1.  The Chair welcomed the BEB members and invitees to the meeting, and the room went
through a round of introductions for the benefit of the PSA attendees.
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Item 2: Minutes and action items
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2.  Postponed to next meeting.
s 9(2)(j) OIA
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s 9(2)(j) OIA
Item 4: Systems Improvement – Data Sharing and Privacy work stream
7.  Papers from the Data Sharing and Privacy project team (MBIE and Customs) were taken
as read. Members discussed the need to allocate the right project resourcing to ensure
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that planned initiatives would advance with minimal impediments.
8.  The Board discussed the role of MIQ in light of its existing intermediate Memorandums of
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Understanding (MOUs) with other agencies and agreed that MIQ should nevertheless be
included  in  scope  for  the  establishment  of  foundational  mechanisms  that  will  ensure
integrated systems and effective information sharing across the border system.
9.  The project team noted their intent to work closely with the Systems Improvements DCEs
group  to  ensure  that  the  right  resourcing  (including  Policy  and  Legal  capability)  was
allocated to this workstream.
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10. Action: The Data Sharing and Privacy project team to involve Maritime NZ and Avsec in
consultation related to further progress on the work stream.
Item 5: Update on COVID-19 vaccine certificate
11. MoH  provided  an  oral  update  on  work  underway  to  generate  and  provide  authoritative
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vaccination evidence for people in NZ who had received the COVID-19 vaccine. The first
version  of  this  was  likely  to  be  in  the  form  of  a  signed  letter  from  MoH, s 9(2)(f)(iv)

the
OIA

Item 6: Rapid review of QFT implementation for Australia
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12. The rapid review report on QFT implementation for Australia was taken as read; this looked
at pauses prior to the most recent, Melbourne one.
13. Members discussed the challenges in adapting, resourcing, and implementing the “pause”
processes  related  to  the  evolving  situation  in  Australia. s 9(2)(g)(i) OIA

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14. MoH noted that continuing to add more layers of assurance increased complexity and thus
risk.
15. Action:  The  QFT  Senior  Officials  Group  to  translate  the  recommendations  into  specific
and implementable actions, with an owner allocated against each.

Item 7: Other issues and priorities
16. The BEB noted that work was required to clarify how border worker testing and vaccination
should be best governed, and that data governance should be considered too.
17. Action: The Border Testing Governance Group to clarify how border worker testing and
vaccination data governance should be best governed by BEB.

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Official
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under
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MINUTES
3pm – 4pm, Thursday, 08 July 2021
Held at MPI, Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen Street
Present: Christine Stevenson (Chair, NZ Customs), Ashley Bloomfield (MoH), Rose King
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(MBIE) for Carolyn Tremain (MBIE), David Taylor (MFAT) for Chris Seed (MFAT), Peter
Mersi (MoT), Penny Nelson (MPI) for Ray Smith (MPI)
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Apologies: Carolyn Tremain (MBIE), Chris Seed (MFAT), Ray Smith (MPI)
In attendance: Brook Barrington (DPMC), Cheryl Barnes (DPMC), Sarah Holland (BEB),
Sonia Mani (BEB), {David Morgan (Air NZ), Helen Littlewood (Air NZ), Cath O’Brien (Air NZ)}
– Item 2, {Bev Driscoll (MoT), Mat Black (Customs)} – Item 3, {Dana McDonald (Customs),
Peter Elms (MBIE)} – Item 5
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Item 1: Welcome, apologies, meeting context
1.  The Chair welcomed the BEB members and invitees to the meeting, and the room went
through a round of introductions for the benefit of the Air New Zealand attendees.
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Item 2: IATA travel pass - Air New Zealand trial
the
2.  David and Helen from Air NZ gave an overview of the trials that Air NZ is currently running
with IATA on the ‘Health Wallet’ or the IATA Travel Pass. They outlined key data, technical
issues, and limitations noted in the first trial, s 9(2)(g)(i) OIA

under
3.  The  IATA  solution  presented  a  one-point  entry  into  connecting  with  the  world,  with
opportunities  to  build  on  a  common  architecture  and  a  combined  view  of  passenger
requirements. MoT and Customs, as the lead agencies on the government’s Travel Health
Pass, noted that the IATA solution in its current state met only a part of the government’s
regulatory  travel  health  verification  requirements.  The  government  team  would  remain
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engaged and provide feedback on further trials of the IATA Travel Pass, with a view to
maximise the inter-operability between the different systems.
4.  s 9(2)(g)(i) OIA

A digital solution
would  help  mitigate  some  risks  including  those  associated  with  staff  needing  to  keep
abreast of complex requirements.

5.  s 9(2)(f)(iv) OIA



6.  The Chair noted that the ‘health pass’ solution also needed to be operable across the NZ
maritime domain. It would need to be adaptable and scalable to changing environmental
and  regulatory  requirements,  such  as  variations  in  available  testing  and  vaccination
regimes.
7.  MFAT  noted  the  importance  of  keeping  abreast  of  and  aligning  with  standards  being
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developed and trialled in other parts of the world, such as in the European Union (EU).
8.  Board  members  discussed  the  complexity  of  the  interface  between  public  and  private
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sector systems, and the ambiguity around standards and requirements. They agreed that
in light of this, work would need to develop gradually and incrementally, by starting with
the  potential  launch  of  a  digital  arrival  solution  and  building  further  exception-handling
capabilities on top of that.
9.  The Chair thanked Air NZ for their presentation and invited them to stay connected with
the BEB on future developments in the IATA Travel Pass.
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Item 3: Travel Health Pass and COVID-19 vaccine certificate – advice to Min Hipkins
10. Papers from the Travel Health Pass team (MoT and Customs) were taken as read.
11. Members  discussed  the  need  to  ensure  that  adequate  back  office  and  contact  centre
support was built into the implementation of proposed solutions.
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12. MFAT  discussed  the  importance  of  keeping  in  touch  with  international  counterparts
s 6(a) OIA
to ensure that planned initiatives can
the
be aligned and progressed with minimal impediments.
13. MoT noted it will consolidate each of the workstream’s proposed resource requirements
and report back to BEB on 22 July 2021.
under
14. The Board noted that Customs would take over programme management from MoT and
Customs  will  underwrite  the  cost  of  a  programme  manager  over  the  short  term  whilst
working on funding options with Treasury.
15. The Board agreed to the proposed Travel Health Pass Work Programme structure.
16. The Board endorsed the contents of the report back to Ministers on Travel Health Pass,
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which is due to Minister Hipkins in mid-July.
17. Members  complimented  the  Travel  Health  Pass  paper  as  a  useful  encapsulation  of  the
policy issues required to support the future development of this work.
Item 4: Reconnecting New Zealanders – public service, airports and airlines
18. The  Chair  noted  that  further  discussion  on  the  IATA  travel  pass  and  the  Government’s
Travel Health Pass was expected to take place between agencies and  aviation industry
leaders at the ‘Safe and smart border: Reconnecting New Zealanders’ hui on 13 July 2021.

Item 5: Systems Improvements - Integrated targeting and border operations
19. Customs and MBIE provided an update on the ‘Integrated targeting and border operations’
project.  It  was  noted  that  the  project’s  proposed  initial  focus  was  on:  taking  steps  to
enhance the resilience and relevance of the Integrated Targeting and Operations Centre
(ITOC) by updating its governance structure; extending the ITOC targeting service to better
support 24/7 operations; bringing in MoH and AVSEC interests; s 6(c) OIA

s 9(2)(j) OIA

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Item 7: Minutes and action items
23. The  minutes  from  the  meetings  of  10  June  2021  and  17  June  2021  were  taken  to  be
accurate records.
24. The following BEB actions were closed:
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a.  #37 (Maritime NZ has been included in the Systems Improvements coordination
DCEs group);
b.  #38 (A session on airline accountabilities in relation to New Zealand’s COVID-19
risk is scheduled on the BEB forward agenda);
c.  #40 (BEB feedback incorporated into the final report of the rapid review of border
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worker testing);
d.  #41  (Scenarios  modelling  team  has  reviewed  additional  data  and  confirmed  the
the
‘moderate’ cargo scenarios with MPI and Customs CEs);
e.  #42 (Maritime NZ and AVSEC have been included in future consultation related to
the Data Sharing and Privacy work stream);
f.  #43  (The  QFT  Senior  Officials  Group  has  translated  the  QFT  rapid  review
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recommendations into specific and implementable actions with an owner allocated
against each).

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