5. Hon MURRAY McCULLY (National—East Coast Bays) Link to this
to the Minister of Conservation
Does he have confidence in his department, in light of the recent Auditor-General’s report Department of Conservation: Planning for and managing publicly owned land; if so, why?
Hon CHRIS CARTER (Minister of Conservation) Link to this
Yes. The report found that the department manages publicly owned land well. As in everything, there is room for improvement—and improve, we will. Actually, this is a rather special question; since the election 10 months ago, this is the first oral question National’s official conservation spokesperson has asked me.
Madam SPEAKERHon Murray McCully Link to this
What is his response to the Auditor-General’s finding that the Department of Conservation—the largest landowner in the country—has no central record of the land it owns, nor any central oversight of the land transactions occurring within individual conservancies, and that rules for the acquisition and disposal of land are routinely breached, and can he tell the House what steps he is taking to act on the Auditor-General’s recommendation that those oversights be remedied?
All records are held at the local conservancy level, where they are most useful. This morning when I appeared for the estimates before the Local Government and Environment Committee, this issue was raised. Strangely, that member, the official spokesperson on conservation for the National Party, failed to turn up at the select committee hearing.
Steve Chadwick
Hon Trevor Mallard Link to this
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. You made it clear yesterday that members interjecting while members are asking questions was unacceptable and would result in expulsion. Gerry Brownlee just did that.
Yes he did. I will warn members again, and I am taking this particular issue about interjections on questions and answers to the next Business Committee in this session. I also note, however, that I had warned the Minister that irrelevant comments in answers were likely to produce similarly irrelevant comments.
Overall the department met most of the Auditor-General’s expectations. The Auditor-General, however, called for better connection between land planning, management, and information systems, and I am receiving advice from the department on how best to do that—as we discussed at the select committee hearing this morning.
Barbara StewartWhat action, if any, does he intend to take to reduce the use of set-nets following research findings that New Zealand’s common dolphin population may be under threat because of set-nets?
A management plan for the preservation and enhancement of Hector’s dolphins and Māui’s dolphins will be released by the department shortly, which will address that question.
Hon Murray McCully Link to this
Has the Minister seen the Auditor-General’s criticism of the two land transaction case studies contained in the report, which found that the documentation was not complete or clear in terms of the decisions that were made for either transaction and that the documentation highlighted significant non-compliance with the department’s standard operating procedures, and does he accept that that is not good enough in the department that is the largest property owner in the country?
I will remind the member, of course, that the Department of Conservation does not own a single hectare in New Zealand; the public of New Zealand owns the land that is managed by the department. With regard to the two case studies the member refers to, I would like to make mention of one of them: Waikawau Bay in the Coromandel, which, I am proud to say, was bought on behalf of the public of New Zealand. I instructed the department to ensure that this iconic piece of land was purchased, and it is enjoyed by thousands of Kiwis every summer. I fully back the process the department used to acquire that land in the Coromandel.
Te Ururoa Flavell Link to this
Following the disposal of land in 2004 from Victoria Conservation Park outside of the statutory time frames allowed in the Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act, what measures have been put in place to ensure such areas do not occur nationally, and how have tangata whenua been involved?
On that particular case we were deserving of criticism. We are working harder and will do better next time.
Hon Murray McCully Link to this
Can the Minister confirm that in respect of the first of the case studies criticised by the Auditor-General—the acquisition of Waikawau Bay, the transaction just mentioned by the Minister himself—the principal player in the breaches of the processes of the Department of Conservation and of the Land Acquisition Committee, and the person behind the sloppy documentation of the transaction, is identified by the Auditor-General as being the Minister himself, and what explanation does he have for that?
The explanation I have is that that iconic piece of beach is now owned by the people of New Zealand; the only beach in the Coromandel where not one single house can be seen. We are proud to have bought that for the people of New Zealand.
Hon Murray McCully Link to this
Can the Minister confirm the Auditor-General’s finding that in relation to the statutory reviews of seven of the 14 national park management plans, the department is in breach of both the Conservation Act 1987 and the National Parks Act 1980; and what steps is he taking to remedy these breaches of the law?
I can confirm that the people of New Zealand now own the entire stretch of Waikawau Bay, and that for endless generations people will be able to camp there. It is the only beach in the Coromandel where a single house cannot be seen. It is now ours forever.
Hon Murray McCully Link to this
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. I do not think there was so much noise in the House that the Minister would not have heard my question. It related to the statutory reviews of seven of the 14 national park management plans and referred to two pieces of legislation that require those reviews to be completed within a certain time frame, and I asked about breaches of the law on the part of his department in that respect. He has just given an answer that is absolutely irrelevant to any of the matters raised in that question.
Yes and I apologise to you, Madam Speaker, and to the House, for being so absolutely proud and excited about Waikawau Bay—which I am, of course. The issues that the member has raised in his first question ever to me in the House as conservation spokesperson are important. I have already conceded that we could do better. Overall, the Auditor-General said the department’s management was fine but there were processes we could improve, and we will.
Chris AuchinvoleCan the Minister confirm that the department has failed to complete the West Coast conservation management strategy, which should have been completed by 1995—11 years ago—but which is still in breach of completion, and what time frame has the Minister set for doing anything about it?
I can confirm that under both the National Minister Nick Smith and myself this plan has not been finished. It is about time it was and I have told the department to get on with it.
Hon Murray McCully Link to this
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. You will have noted that a couple of times the Minister who has been the subject of the most recent question has mentioned my failure to be in the select committee this morning to offer any questions to him. The reason for that, of course, is that I was in the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee, of which I am a member, at the time the Minister appeared in another committee. I wonder whether you might like to make a ruling that requires the sitting time of the Foreign Affairs Committee to be changed in future to accommodate the Minister’s obvious request for me to be there.