Clause 7 replaces section 11 of the principal Act, which is the primary empowering section for COVID-19 orders.
New section 11(1)(a) is substantially the same as the current section 11(1)(a). The new provision refers to containing, reducing, controlling, managing, eliminating, or limiting the risk of the outbreak or spread of COVID-19, as well its prevention.
New section 11(1)(b) is new and provides for the more effective management of managed isolation and quarantine facilities (MIQFs) and other places of isolation or quarantine.
New section 11(1)(c) replaces the current section 11(1)(b) (which refers to places, premises, craft, vehicles, and other things) to avoid confusion as to the meaning of other things. Places, premises, craft, and vehicles are referred to separately, rather than as other things.
New section 11(1)(d) is new and enables orders to make provisions relating to laboratories undertaking COVID-19 testing, including provisions that set standards or manage the supply of testing consumables.
New section 11(1)(e) is new and provides for the ability to requisition COVID-19 testing consumables and to require a testing laboratory to undertake testing solely for the public health response to COVID-19. Related provisions about compensation and payment for services are in new section 11A inserted by clause 8.
New section 11(2) replaces the current section 11(2) by enabling COVID-19 orders to specify that a breach of an order is a particular class of infringement offence (with the corresponding penalties). See also clause 23, for the related power to make regulations prescribing different infringement penalties for different infringement offences or classes of infringement offences.
New section 11(3) replaces the definition of things in the current section 11(3) so that things includes animals, goods, businesses, records, equipment, and supplies.
New section 11(4) provides that goods prohibited from entering a port or place by a COVID-19 order are prohibited imports for the purposes of the Customs and Excise Act 2018.
New section 11(5) provides that a COVID-19 order is secondary legislation, which means it will be published and disallowable in accordance with the Legislation Act 2019.
New section 11(6) provides that a notice given under the powers in new section 12(1)(d) will also be secondary legislation.
Clause 9 replaces section 12 of the principal Act, which contains general provisions about the scope of COVID-19 orders.
New section 12(1)(a) replaces current section 12(1)(a) to align it with changes made by clause 7.
New section 12(1)(b) is substantially the same as current section 12(1)(b).
New section 12(1)(c) is substantially the same as current section 12(1)(c) and enables an order to disapply provisions of the order.
New section 12(1)(d) replaces current section 12(1)(d) and more clearly enables an order to subdelegate matters to the Director-General or the chief executive.
New section 12(2) carries over most of the limitations in current section 12(2). However, the limitation that prevents an order from applying to a specific individual is removed and the limitation about boundaries in orders made by the Director-General is aligned with changes made by clause 6.
New section 12(3) is substantially the same as current section 12(3).
New section 12(4) provides that the disapplication of a provision of a COVID-19 order can be expressed as an exemption or exclusion, or in another appropriate form.
Clause 12 amends section 22 of the principal Act, which relates to the power to close roads and public places, and stop vehicles.
Subclause (1) replaces the word authority in section 22(2) with supervision, so that the provision refers to enforcement officers acting under the supervision of a constable when exercising the power to prohibit or restrict public access to a road or public place.
Subclause (2) inserts new section 22(3A) to ensure that a constable can exercise the power to stop vehicles at a road block or checkpoint for the purpose of enforcing or monitoring compliance with a COVID-19 order that restricts movement by people with or without vehicles.
Subclause (3) inserts new section 22(5) to (7) to enable a limited group of enforcement officers to stop a vehicle under section 22 if acting under the supervision of a constable. The group consists of members of the Armed Forces, Māori wardens, nominated representatives of iwi organisations, Pasifika wardens, and community patrollers.
Clause 13 replaces section 26 of the principal Act and relates to offences. Section 26 creates an offence of intentionally failing to comply with a COVID-19 order and an infringement offence of doing anything specified as such in a COVID-19 order.
New section 26(1) carries over the offence of intentionally failing to comply with a COVID-19 order.
New section 26(2) increases the maximum fine for intentionally failing to comply with an order from $4,000 to $12,000 for an individual and to $15,000 for a body corporate.
New section 26(3) provides that a breach of rules made by the chief executive under new section 32Q inserted by clause 22 is an infringement offence. Other infringement offences are either created in the principal Act or in COVID-19 orders.
New section 26(4) sets out the penalties for infringement offences. A person who commits an infringement offence is currently liable to a fixed infringement fee of $300 or a fine imposed by a court not exceeding $1,000. This new provision fixes a maximum infringement fee of $4,000 for an individual and $12,000 for a body corporate, and increases the maximum fine for an infringement offence to $12,000 for an individual and to $15,000 for a body corporate. This provision also recognises that regulations made under new section 33 inserted by clause 23 may set different penalties (which may be less than the maximum penalties in new section 26(4)) for different infringement offences or classes of infringement offences. However, these new maximum penalties will not apply until new section 26(4) is brought into force by Order in Council.
New section 32N provides for the issue of offline allocations. This provision is similar to clause 15L of the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Isolation and Quarantine) Order 2020, except that it provides for individual and group allocations, and will replace that clause.
New section 32P restricts the movement of individuals who reside in an MIQF or other place of isolation or quarantine by requiring them to remain in their rooms except for a purpose set out in the section. Clause 8 of the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Isolation and Quarantine) Order 2020 currently requires a person to remain in their room, subject to exceptions set out in clauses 13 and 14 of the order. The exceptions set out in clause 13 of that order are set out in new section 32P, which will replace clause 13 of that order. This new section will enable the chief executive to manage the day-to-day movement of residents on public health and other grounds.
New section 32R enables the chief executive to seize and hold anything that a person in isolation or quarantine in an MIQF possesses in the MIQF, or attempts to bring into the MIQF, in breach of the rules made under new section 32Q. An example is bringing in alcohol in excess of limits specified in the rules. The power to hold any items lasts only for the remainder of the person’s stay in the MIQF.