wider community, with the whole of the supply chain benefiting, from local growers, delivery drivers, local businesses, and community organisations that are preparing the lunches and supplying the schools. About 950 jobs have already been generated by the programme, and it’s estimated that around 2,000 jobs will be created by the end of this year.
Question No. 4—Prime Minister
4. DAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all her statements and actions regarding the Government’s response to COVID-19?
Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN (Prime Minister): Yes, including our announcement yesterday that the Government has guaranteed that every New Zealander will have access to the Pfizer vaccine, after securing an additional 8.5 million doses. This brings our total Pfizer order to 10 million doses, or enough for 5 million people to get two shots of the vaccine, needed to fully vaccinate against COVID-19.
David Seymour: Did the Government officials confirm that every person connected to the Papatoetoe cluster who was required to self-isolate actually was self-isolating, and, if not, why not?
Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: Certainly there was the confidence that they’d communicated with members of the community, because that was happening not just through the public health units but through the school itself. And, of course, the high turnout of school members for testing—which, obviously, was over a thousand—demonstrated a level of confidence that those messages had got through.
David Seymour: Point of order. Mr Speaker, the question was about confirming whether people were self-isolating. The Standing Orders are very clear that there needn’t be arguments or imputations other than those necessary to answer the question. The level of vaccination is completely irrelevant from confirming isolation.
SPEAKER: I think there was probably some additional information given by the Prime Minister. That’s not against the Standing Orders.
David Seymour: Thank you, Mr Speaker, but point of order. My question was—had she addressed the question. I agree with you; she said more than she needed to—
SPEAKER: She did address it, right at the beginning.
David Seymour: OK, I’ll have to accept your ruling, Mr Speaker.
SPEAKER: Good.
David Seymour: Was every close contact in the Papatoetoe cluster contact traced and told by officials to self-isolate within 48 hours, and, if not, why not?
Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: My recollection, of course, is that those defined as close contacts in that case were the 31 class members, and, yes, we returned those results relatively quickly. You’ll remember from that we had one positive result. Then for the rest of the wider school community, yes, they were all, of course, asked to go home, isolate—or stay home, indeed, because it was the 14 February and a Sunday; stay home, isolate, and be tested. The point I was making in the answer to my first question is that the high number of individuals who then presented for testing demonstrated the confidence that officials had that those messages were getting through.
Chris Bishop: Is it the Government position that comments made by the Unite against COVID-19 Facebook page should not be relied on, and, if that’s the case, why should the public have any faith in the substantive comments posted by that Facebook page?
Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: No.
David Seymour: Does the Prime Minister anticipate any kind of reprimand or penalty of case L for failing to follow rules that they were made aware of by the Government?
Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: In fact, thank you—I thank the member; this is an opportunity, I think, to correct one of the statements that was made during the opening
