Conflicts of interest at NZ Immunisation Advisory Service
Erika Whittome made this Official Information request to Ministry of Health
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From: Erika Whittome
Dear Ministry of Health,
Last week Robert Kennedy dismissed all 17 members of the US CDC federal vaccine advisory panel accusing them of conflicts of interest (presumably with the vaccine and/or pharmaceutical manufacturers).
For the New Zealand Immunisation Advisory Service and its committee, would you please share the conflicts of interest statements for all its members? This would be in line with 'Conflict of Interest Management' from the Office of the Auditor General.
Yours faithfully,
Erika Whittome
From: OIA Requests
Kia ora Erika
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (the
Act), received by the Ministry of Health on 16 June 2025. You requested:
Last week Robert Kennedy dismissed all 17 members of the US CDC federal
vaccine advisory panel accusing them of conflicts of interest (presumably
with the vaccine and/or pharmaceutical manufacturers).
For the New Zealand Immunisation Advisory Service and its committee, would
you please share the conflicts of interest statements for all its members?
This would be in line with 'Conflict of Interest Management' from the
Office of the Auditor General.
The reference number for your request is H2025068622. As required under
the Act, the Ministry will endeavour to respond to your request no later
than 20 working days after the day your request was
received: [1]http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/
If you have any queries related to this request, please do not hesitate to
get in touch ([2][email address]).
Ngā mihi
OIA Services Team
[3]Ministry of Health information releases
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References
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1. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/
2. mailto:[email address]
3. https://www.health.govt.nz/about-ministr...
From: OIA Requests
Kia ora Erika
Please find attached the transfer of your request for official
information.
Ngā mihi
OIA Services Team
Ministry of Health | Manatū Hauora
M[1]inistry of Health information releases
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References
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1. https://www.health.govt.nz/about-ministr...
From: Ministerial
Kia ora Erika
This is an acknowledgement of your transferred OIA request from the
Ministry of Health, which Pharmac received on 2 July. The reference number
for your request is: 2025-26-003
You should receive a response from us on or before 30 July 2025. This is
within the 20 working day limit set out in the Official Information Act.
Please contact us if you have any questions.
Ngā mihi,
Government Services | Pharmac
___________________________________________________________________
Pharmac - Te Pātaka Whaioranga | Level 9, 40 Mercer Street, Wellington
[1]www.pharmac.govt.nz
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From: Web Enquiry
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Kia ora Erika
Please find attached a response to your request for official information.
Ngā mihi,
Government Services | Pharmac
___________________________________________________________________
Pharmac - Te Pātaka Whaioranga | Level 9, 40 Mercer Street, Wellington
[1]www.pharmac.govt.nz
________________
From: Ministerial
Sent: Thursday, 3 July 2025 12:04 pm
To: [FOI #31313 email]
Subject: Acknowledgment of your request for official information -
2025-26-003
Kia ora Erika
This is an acknowledgement of your transferred OIA request from the
Ministry of Health, which Pharmac received on 2 July. The reference number
for your request is: 2025-26-003
You should receive a response from us on or before 30 July 2025. This is
within the 20 working day limit set out in the Official Information Act.
Please contact us if you have any questions.
Ngā mihi,
Government Services | Pharmac
___________________________________________________________________
Pharmac - Te Pātaka Whaioranga | Level 9, 40 Mercer Street, Wellington
[2]www.pharmac.govt.nz
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From: Erika Whittome
Dear Ministry of Health,
This request was to the NZ Immunisation Advisory Service. However the 29 July response is from Pharmac. This request was not to Pharmac.
Would you please provide the information for those at the NZ Immunisation Advisory Service. I note the position of the NZ government for conflicts of interest is published here https://www.procurement.govt.nz/guides/g...
Yours sincerely,
Erika Whittome
From: Web Enquiry
Thank you for contacting Pharmac, we have received your enquiry and will
endeavour to have a reply to you as soon as we can.
Pharmac cannot provide medical advice. If you have questions about your
health or are experiencing side effects from medicines, please call:
· Your usual healthcare provider.
· Healthline on 0800 611 116.
· 111 for medical emergencies.
This e-mail message and any accompanying attachments may contain
confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient, please do
not read, use, disseminate, distribute or copy this message or
attachments. If you have received this message in error, please notify the
sender immediately and delete this message.
From: Erika Whittome
Dear Ministry of Health,
I have lodged a complaint with the ombudsman for the conflict of interest statements of the NZ immunization advisory service board being withheld under the Act
Yours faithfully,
Erika Whittome
From: Web Enquiry
Kia ora Erika
Ref: (OIA tracking no. 2025‑26‑003)
As discussed with the Ombudsman office, please find the summary of the
declared interests of the Immunisation Specialist Advisory Committee:
Pharmac’s Immunisation Advisory Committee currently has 14 members and
there are declared interests for 7 members. Around half (48%) of the
declared interests relate to membership on advisory boards or consultant
services to vaccine/pharmaceutical Industry related to their clinical
expertise. Research investigator roles account for about a quarter (24%)
of declared interests. Other interests include some sponsorship or
financial support to attend vaccine related conferences or workshops,
including travel and accommodation. Several roles are funded by Ministry
of Health or business interests in health services.
Where deemed a conflict, Pharmac’s practice is to exclude the member from
voting on recommendations. Members may still be included in the
discussion, depending on the situation.
Ngā mihi,
Government Services | Pharmac
___________________________________________________________________
Pharmac - Te Pātaka Whaioranga | Level 9, 40 Mercer Street, Wellington
[1]www.pharmac.govt.nz
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From: Erika Whittome
Dear Web Enquiry,
I did not request a summary. Please provide the requested information
Yours sincerely,
Erika Whittome
From: Web Enquiry
Kia ora Erika
For the reasons outlined in our response letter to you dated 29 July 2025,
we are unable to provide the conflicts of interest statements for the
Immunisation Specialist Advisory Committee members.
Following our discussions with the Ombudsman’s Office, we have provided a
summary of the declared interests.
Please note, you have the right to make a complaint to the Ombudsman about
our response to your OIA, under section 28(3) of the OIA. Details of how
to make a complaint are on the Ombudsman’s website:
[1]https://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/what...
Ngā mihi,
Government Services | Pharmac
___________________________________________________________________
Pharmac - Te Pātaka Whaioranga | Level 9, 40 Mercer Street, Wellington
[2]www.pharmac.govt.nz
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Nadine Connock left an annotation ()
Of particular interest would be the Conflict of Interest statement for Simon Watt. Formerly a Bell Gully partner for 22 years. He has advised on the establishment and during the set-up phase of entities including Pharmac, DHBs. During the Covid pandemic, Simon advised Crown Infrastructure Partners on establishment of the ‘shovel-ready projects’ initiative and supported MBIE in leading contract negotiations to secure New Zealand’s portfolio of Covid-19 vaccines. Simon was a member of Bell Gully’s Board for five years and served as the firm’s Deputy Chair, and Chair of the Wellington office.
Simon’s current outside roles are:
Layperson member and Deputy Chair, Medical Council of New Zealand
New Zealand Honorary Adviser, Asia New Zealand Foundation
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