Cabinet and briefing material: Negotiating Mandate for Amendments to the International Health Regulations 2005 and the Pandemic Treaty

Negotiating Mandate for Amendments to the International Health Regulations 2005 and the Pandemic Treaty

World Health Organization (WHO) member States are currently engaged in negotiations to improve the WHO legal frameworks which apply to acute public health risks (e.g. disease outbreaks and pandemics). There are two concurrent negotiations:

• amendments to the International Health Regulations 2005 (IHR), which are the principal legal framework for preventing and controlling the spread of disease and other public health hazards between countries; and
• a new ‘Pandemic Treaty’ which aims to strengthen cooperation between countries to prevent and improve the management of future pandemics.

Cabinet paper:

This Cabinet paper and associated minutes (published on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade's website here: Negotiating Mandate for Amendments to the International Health Regulations 2005 and the Pandemic Treaty) provide an updated Cabinet mandate to take account of the current stage in the negotiations and the priorities of the Coalition Government.

More information about amending the International Health Regulations (2005) can be found here: Amending the International Health Regulations (2005) | Ministry of Health NZ.

Key advice papers published below:

• Briefing: Negotiating Mandate for the Amendments to the International Health Regulations 2005 and the Pandemic Treaty (H2024035495)
• Aide memoire: Negotiating mandate for amendments to the International Health Regulations and a new Pandemic Treaty (H2024035846) 

Some parts of this information release, and that of the Cabinet material, would not be appropriate to release and, if requested, would be withheld under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act). Where this is the case, the relevant sections of the Act that would apply have been identified. Where information has been withheld, no public interest has been identified that would outweigh the reasons for withholding it.

Key to redaction codes:

• S 6(a) where its release would likely prejudice the international relations of the Government of New Zealand.
• S 9(2)(a) to protect the privacy of natural persons.
• S 9(2)(b)(ii) where its release would likely unreasonably prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied the information.
• S 9(2)(j) to enable a Minister or any public service agency to carry on negotiations without prejudice or disadvantage (including commercial and industrial negotiations).