12. CHRIS HIPKINS (Labour—Rimutaka) Link to this
to the Minister responsible for Ministerial Services
Has he now been fully briefed on all of the details regarding the replacement of VIP transport’s BMW fleet; if not, why not?
Rt Hon JOHN KEY (Minister responsible for Ministerial Services) Link to this
I have received details on the replacement of the fleet where and when appropriate.
Is he aware that 2 days after his chief of staff met with the VIP Transport Service to discuss the upgrade of the VIP fleet, the owner of an exclusive new and used BMW dealership in Auckland gave a $50,000 donation to the New Zealand National Party?
How can he claim that, when only a few weeks earlier he had attended, as Prime Minister, a client function hosted by the Team McMillan BMW dealership in Auckland, which led to the donation?
Because that is the very reason why contracts subject to the Cabinet Manual are made by Ministerial Services—to avoid accusations that would otherwise be levelled of inappropriate conduct.
Would he say that the meeting his chief of staff had with Ministerial Services to talk through the BMW purchase on 28 July last year—just 2 days before the $50,000 donation to the National Party—was just a coincidence or more sloppy management of perceived conflicts of interest by his Government?
I would say that the meeting was very difficult to remember, because the chief of staff could not remember it.
Which statement is true: his statement during question time yesterday that he had aggressively reviewed Ministerial Services’ spending line by line to identify all potential savings, or his statement during question time on 12 April that he did not know about the BMW upgrade because it had been just one line in a “very large document” that he happened to have signed?
Both. The member needs to take a lesson from some of the former Ministers in Labour about how ministerial responsibility works and when officials have responsibility. I know that the member is probably very unlikely to become a Minister, from what I hear from his colleagues, but he should take some advice.