28432 (2026). Camilla Belich to the Minister of Internal Affairs

28432 (2026). Camilla Belich to the Minister of Internal Affairs: What specific purposes are Fire and Emergency New Zealand's 9 Microsoft Copilot licences being used for, and is Copilot used in any way to inform, support, or prioritise emergency response, call-handling, or risk and resource planning?

Hon Brooke van Velden: I am advised Fire and Emergency is in a pilot phase of using Microsoft CoPilot. Therefore, the tool has only been deployed in very limited cases to test its functionality, security, and effectiveness. A range of users makes up the 15 pilot licences, from Executive Assistants testing CoPilot effectiveness for managing large email and request volumes, to select ICT staff using it for a range of analytical tasks to assess their effectiveness. CoPilot is not used in emergency response functions, or in Fire and Emergency’s Communications Centres for call-handling, risk and resource planning.