10. Hon TONY RYALL (National—Bay of Plenty) Link to this
to the Minister of Health
Did the Ministry of Health receive a copy of any transcripts or recordings of meetings involving the whistleblower or anybody else in response to the ministry’s Official Information Act request to the Hawke’s Bay District Health Board of 27 April 2006?
Hon JIM ANDERTON (Acting Minister of Health) Link to this
The ministry advises that it has never received a transcript or recording of meetings involving the whistleblower or anyone else. However, it does have a file note from the Hawke’s Bay District Health Board that records the essence of one of those meetings, and a copy of which, I am advised, is in the public arena.
Is the Minister aware that discussions between the whistleblower and a senior manager at the Hawke’s Bay District Health Board were recorded covertly without the whistleblower’s knowledge; and would he have expected such recordings to be surrendered in response to the ministry’s request for all information?
Again, I am advised that this issue is being dealt with under employment law, and any comment would be inappropriate. Suffice it to say, however, that the information given to this House and the public of New Zealand by Mr Ryall stating that the whistleblower was the only employee of the district health board to lose employment was totally incorrect. There were, I am advised, 28 redundancies in the district health board’s restructuring exercise.
Would the Minister like to share with the House how many of those 28 people reapplied for new jobs within the district health board and got them, and how many of the eight people in management who lost their jobs and had to reapply for new jobs got those new jobs—would the answer be everybody except one?
Hon Dr Nick SmithDr Nick Smith says that as I do not have all of the information I have been caught out. He never has any information at all on any subject! I am advised that there were a total of 47 redundancies: seven management and administration, 21 clinical, and 19 management and administration. Of those, I understand that some reapplied for their positions.
Did anyone else in the Hawke’s Bay District Health Board receive a copy of a transcript of the recordings; if so, who?
I have no information on that matter that would enable me to answer the member’s question. If he wants to put down a written question, I will see whether I can get an answer for him.
If the chief executive was given a copy of the transcript, would the Acting Minister have expected that that transcript would have been surrendered to the Ministry of Health under the Official Information Act?
As I said in the original answer, a transcript of the conversation between the acting chief executive at the time and the person named as the whistleblower is in the hands of the ministry, but I understand that it is also in the hands of the member and is on the public record.
As a copy of the transcript was handed to the chief executive of the Hawke’s Bay District Health Board, and it was not surrendered to the ministry as part of the Official Information Act request, is the only reason for the document not being surrendered the fact that it no longer existed?