Kia ora Joshua,

  

Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (the
Act), received by the Ministry of Health - Manatû Hauora on 22 March 2026.
You requested:

 

“The following document:

The full briefing paper dated 22 December 2021 to the then-Minister for
COVID-19 Response, Hon Chris Hipkins, titled: “Policy decisions required
for further amendments to the COVID-19 Public Health Response
(Vaccinations) Order (No 7) 2021”

Internal reference: HR20212779

This document is referenced in the Royal Commission of Inquiry into
COVID-19 Lessons Learned (Phase 2 report, March 2026), particularly in the
section on vaccine mandates and CV TAG advice (including paragraph 23).

I request:
- The complete, unredacted briefing paper (all pages, including paragraph
23 and any recommendations)
- All attachments, annexes, appendices, or supporting documents
- Any covering minute or email that accompanied the briefing.”
 

The reference number for your request is H2026080412. We will endeavour to
respond to your request as soon as possible and in any event no later than
21 April 2026 being 20 working days after the day your request was
received. If we are unable to respond to your request by then, we will
notify you of an extension of that timeframe.

 

If you have any queries regarding your request, please feel free to
contact the OIA Services Team on [1][email address]. If any
additional factors come to light which are relevant to your request,
please do not hesitate to contact us so that these can be taken into
account. 

 

Under section 28(3) of the Act you have the right to ask the Ombudsman to
review any decisions made under this request. The Ombudsman may be
contacted by email at: [2][email address] or by calling 0800
802 602.

 

 

Ngâ mihi, 
 
OIA Services Team

Ministry of Health | Manatû Hauora

 

M[3]inistry of Health information releases

 

 

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References

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Kia ora Joshua, 
Thank you for your request for official information received on 22 March
2026:
"The full briefing paper dated 22 December 2021 to the then-Minister for
COVID-19 Response, Hon Chris Hipkins, titled: “Policy decisions required
for further amendments to the COVID-19 Public Health Response
(Vaccinations) Order (No 7) 2021”
Internal reference: HR20212779
This document is referenced in the Royal Commission of Inquiry into
COVID-19 Lessons Learned (Phase 2 report, March 2026), particularly in the
section on vaccine mandates and CV TAG advice (including paragraph 23).
I request:
- The complete, unredacted briefing paper (all pages, including paragraph
23 and any recommendations)
- All attachments, annexes, appendices, or supporting documents
- Any covering minute or email that accompanied the briefing.”
The Ministry of Health has decided to extend the period of time available
to respond to your request under section 15A of the Official Information
Act 1982 (the Act) as the consultations necessary to make a decision on
the request are such that a proper response to the request cannot
reasonably be made within the original time limit.
 
You can now expect a response to your request on, or before, Tuesday 5th
May 2026. Please note this extension is inclusive of Anzac Day, observed
on the 27^th April as a public holiday.
 
You have the right, under section 28 of the Act, to ask the Ombudsman to
review my decision to extend the time available to respond to your
request.
Ngâ mihi,

OIA Services Team

Ministry of Health | Manatû Hauora

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