“The results of the public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has now been received, with results indicating over 13,000 submissions were made from members of the public,” Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says.

“We heard feedback about the extended lockdowns in Auckland and Northland and the disproportionately hard impact these had on residents. We also heard from people throughout the regions on disruptions to health, education, and business.

“The submissions covered a range of issues including the use of multiple lockdowns, the impact on social wellbeing and mental health, and vaccine efficacy.

“This coalition Government committed to take decisions on the scope of the extension to the COVID-19 Inquiry as one of our priorities for this quarter.

“We are currently working through a range of options to meet this commitment in both the ACT-National and NZ First-National coalition agreements and will have clear decisions made before the end of June,” Ms van Velden says.

“The Inquiry is an important part of New Zealand knowing what we need to do right in the future. This means asking the right questions now so we can gather the right evidence. I would like to thank all New Zealanders who took the time to submit and have their voices heard.”

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