Official Information Act Request

Dear Minister Mark Mitchell,

I am requesting information relating to public statements made by you and by New Zealand Police concerning the safety of oral‑fluid drug‑testing devices, including the “20 years of safe use” claim and statements regarding the availability of Safety Data Sheets (SDS).

This request concerns the origin, justification, and internal communication surrounding those public statements.

1. Origin of the “20 years of safe use” claim
Please provide:

all documents, briefings, talking points, emails, or advice provided to you or your office that refer to the phrase “20 years of safe use”, or any similar wording

any documents explaining the origin of this claim

confirmation of whether this claim was derived from the Police statement that:

“Pathtech has been the exclusive Australian and New Zealand distributor for Securetec for over 20 years.”

if not, the source of the claim

2. Basis for describing the devices as “safe”
Please provide:

all documents, advice, or internal communications relied upon when describing the DrugWipe or associated oral‑fluid collection devices as “safe” or “used safely”

any documents defining what “safe” was intended to mean in this context

any evidence provided to you supporting the assertion of long‑term safe use

3. Contradiction regarding Safety Data Sheets (SDS)
Police have publicly identified Quantisal as the oral‑fluid collection device used. Quantisal has a published Safety Data Sheet.

Please provide:

all documents or communications explaining why Police stated in response to my earlier OIA that no Safety Data Sheet existed

any internal discussion acknowledging or addressing the existence of the Quantisal SDS

any review or reconsideration of that earlier OIA response

This request concerns the reasoning behind the public and OIA statements, not the SDS documents themselves.

4. Additional safety‑related process questions
4.1 Internal safety decision‑making
All documents or communications provided to you that discuss:

whether the devices posed any chemical hazard

whether HSWA or HSNO obligations applied

whether WorkSafe should be consulted

whether SDS documents should have been obtained

4.2 Accuracy of public statements
Any documents assessing or reviewing the accuracy of public statements made by you or Police regarding:

safety

SDS availability

historical use claims

4.3 Internal concerns
Any concerns raised within Police or your office about:

the accuracy of public statements

the absence of SDS

the safety narrative being presented publicly

5. Clarification
This request is limited to the origin and justification of public statements.
It does not seek the underlying safety documents previously requested from Police.
It therefore does not duplicate any earlier OIA request.

Yours faithfully,

Nigel Gray