Dear Public Service Commission,
I refer to the advice "COVID-19 Workforce Vaccinations Guidance" on your website dated 2 March 2021:

https://web.archive.org/web/202105121412...

It says :
" On 3 February 2021, Medsafe the medicines safety authority approved the first Covid-19 vaccine for use in New Zealand. It has been robustly assessed to ensure it meets international standards and local requirements for quality and safety."

1. Please share the information on this medicine approval which the Public Service Commission received that said the medine was approved.

2. Please share the assessment which the Public Service Commission relied on to say that the medicine was robustly assessed for quality and safety.

The advice lauds vaccination and suggests making it a condition of employment agreements, for example:
"Expect: set an expectation that all staff should be vaccinated
Communicate an expectation that all staff who are able to be vaccinated will be vaccinated."

"For at-risk workforces, consider introducing a requirement for new employees to be vaccinated into employment agreements by agreement with any relevant unions."

"Vaccines should be administered in the workplace where possible"

3. Please share the analysis on the justified limitations on the NZ Bill of Rights 1990 which discusses the right to refuse medical treatment. I am requesting all the information (emails, correspondence, policy documents, meeting minutes etc) dated up to 2 March 2021 on the complete analysis of this demonstrably justified limitation on the Bill of Rights 1990.

Yours faithfully,

Erika Whittome

Dear Enquiries,
Thanks a shame the statutory deadline will not be met. You said "This extension is necessary because consultations needed to make a decision on your request are such that a proper response cannot reasonably be made within the original time limit."

When information is provided under the Act, how is consultation required and justified under the Act?

Yours sincerely,

Erika Whittome

Dear Enquiries,

Regarding question one, your response has not addressed approval. It only addresses "that Medsafe has granted provisional approval"
When something is "approved", it's fully approved. "Provisional approval" indicates conditional, not complete or even half done. For example, I ran a "provisional marathon" on the weekend. I ran 8 miles with the proviso that I would run the other 16 miles next weekend. So it's not a full marathon of 26 miles. It's a "provisional" marathon and I'll finish the rest later.

The PSC said "approval" of the vaccine, so would you please share the information on full approval at the relevant time of the PSC advice? If the information on (full) "approval" simply does not exist, please let me know.

Yours sincerely,

Erika Whittome