Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

Australia remains closely engaged with the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, led, of course, by the former Prime Minister of New Zealand Helen Clark and the former President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Surleaf. We've welcomed the independent panel's progress report of 19 January. Australia has advocated for strengthening the WHO's authority to quickly access and investigate an outbreak, and our national submission to the panel focused clearly on building an independent and authoritative WHO, reducing the risk of zoonotic disease transmission and strengthening WHO operations on the ground. The panel's progress report stated that the WHO's power to validate reports of disease outbreaks and deploy resources to affected areas is gravely limited. Following the WHO investigation team's media conference last week, Australia will continue to advocate for a review and a report that is both thorough and credible.