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Summarised by Centrist
New Zealand First is calling for a new parliamentary inquiry into COVID vaccine injuries, arguing the latest Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID Lessons Learned failed to fully examine safety concerns raised during the pandemic.
The second phase of the Commission’s report, released this week, strongly endorsed the use of vaccines and concluded that the approval process for the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID vaccine was thorough and justified.
However, the report also revealed that officials had been warned about potential risks associated with administering two doses to teenagers, including myocarditis, and that those warnings were not passed on to ministers at the time.
In response, Winston Peters criticised the inquiry and said key questions had not been properly addressed.
“The lessons we should have learned have in many ways been covered up or not even investigated,” Peters said.
He also dismissed the findings outright, saying: “When I see Jacinda Ardern proudly saying that they’re happy with the inquiry, I know the inquiry is a sham.”
Peters pointed to concerns raised during the vaccination rollout for teenagers.
“Every parent of a child that age at that time is going to be asking themselves now what could be the possible adverse effect on my child,” he said.
He added that “the Crown needs to know how widespread any effects of those known risks, that were mandated on New Zealanders, were, but specifically those young people.”
NZ First is proposing a select committee inquiry that would allow people who believe they were injured by vaccines to give evidence and examine decisions made by officials and ministers during the pandemic.
Coalition partner David Seymour said he was open to the idea.
“A lot of people felt they were ostracised from society, and if this helps them feel seen and heard, then it might not be a bad thing,” Seymour said.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins dismissed the proposal.
“One of the wonders of being Winston Peters is you never have to be consistent in your position on anything,” Hipkins said.
