There has been little fanfare about New Zealand’s decision to formally reject amendments to international health regulations (IHR) drawn up after the Covid-19 pandemic. That is possibly because it is baffling and an action which seems designed to appeal to some New Zealand First voters, and to suck up to the United States. As Newsroom reported, another seven said they had rejected the amendments as they needed more time to finally implement them. There have been no official ministerial statements issued on last week’s action by either Health Minister Simeon Brown or Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters. This was clearly illustrated during New Zealand’s Covid-19 response because countries took their own line on advice they received from the WHO.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 22, 2026 17:03 UTC