Transparency statement

This transparency statement explains how we collect, use and share information gathered about members of the public or other entities (directly or indirectly) in accordance with the Information Gathering and Public Trust standards.

The Health Quality and Safety Commission (the Commission) has a mandate to collect information in accordance with Section 59E of the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000 (the Commission may appoint mortality review committees) and in particular, schedule 5 of the Act.

The Commission’s prosecution policy can be found on our website . It states:

’The Commission has the ability to take forward a prosecution on behalf of a mortality review committee, if:

• information requested by a mortality review committee chair is not provided without reasonable excuse
• information held by, or on behalf of, a mortality review committee is shared outside of the mortality review process.’

Otherwise the Commission does not does not have any law enforcement or regulatory compliance responsibilities and does not gather any information for these purposes.

The security of our premises is managed in accordance with our health, safety and wellness policy and in accordance with government procurement standards and government Protective Security Requirements. The security of our information is managed in accordance our privacy policy and information and communication technology policy manual, and in compliance with the Privacy Act 1993, the Official Information Act 1982 and the Public Records Act 2005. The information we hold is used only for the purpose for which it is collected or as otherwise advised, and data collected is aggregated or anonymised.

Note where we have serious concerns regarding potential threats to the physical security of staff, or the security of information or places, we will engage an appropriate authority (such as the New Zealand Police | Nga Pirihimana O Aotearoa).

Should we identify a need to gather information in scope of the model standards in future, we will ensure compliance with Information Gathering and Public Trust standards and update this transparency statement.

This statement applies to information gathered by us, our contractors, or any other third parties engaged by us.

Enquiries and complaints

If you have any enquiries about our information gathering activities, or believe we have not acted in accordance with this statement, you should contact us at the following address:

Privacy Officer
Health Quality and Safety Commission
PO Box 25496
Wellington 6146
Email: info@hqsc.govt.nz