Rather than spending tens of millions on a backward-looking, legalistic royal commission into Australia’s pandemic performance, a collaborative effort that starts now will better improve the country’s preparedness for future outbreaks, says public health innovator, Associate Professor, Craig Dalton.

“A royal commission would yield limited intelligence because of its adversarial nature,” he said. “Look at the Ruby Princess inquiry. It had some value, but was run by a lawyer rather than a public health expert, which meant key public health questions and insights were missed.”