Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR (Minister for Trade and Export Growth): Yes, I agree that New Zealand has an international responsibility to help make COVID-19 vaccines accessible to everyone worldwide. This Government supports a waiver of intellectual property protections in relation to COVID-19 vaccines under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, or what is called "TRIPS" and the "TRIPS waiver". As chair of APEC, New Zealand used its APEC host year to encourage engagement on this issue. It sits alongside New Zealand's efforts in APEC and at the World Trade Organization (WTO) to address other elements of supply chain issues for vaccines and COVID-19 products. Following our efforts, 17 APEC economies have now either lowered or completely removed tariffs on vaccines and related products, making them easier to access.