Martin Tracey: Offices of Parliament — Address to Governor-GeneralText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeMartin Tracey: Offices of Parliament — Address to Governor-General[Sitting date: 15 April 2014. Volume:698;Page:17237. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]TRACEY MARTIN (NZ First): Kia ora Mr Assistant Speaker. I am pleased to rise on behalf of New Zealand First and take a call on this Government motion which covers the 2013-14 alterations to appropriations for Offices of Parliament and the appropriations and information for the 2014-15 financial year. New Zealand First gives its support to this motion. We acknowledge the importance of these roles and agencies the services they provide to Parliament and how vital it is that they be resourced properly in order to fulfil their functions adequately. These roles play a crucial part in the institutional structure of our democracy. I will outline just a few instances of the valuable work these roles and agencies have performed.In February 2013 the Office of the Auditor-General made an inquiry into the Government’s decision to negotiate with Skycity Entertainment Group Ltd for an international convention centre. The report considered the adequacy of the negotiation process and whether anything substantively wrong took place. The Auditor-General found a range of deficiencies in the advice that the Ministry of Economic Development provided and in the steps that officials and Ministers took leading up to that decision. This fell very far short of what should have been expected from the lead Government agency on commercial and procurement matters.In November 2013 the Office of the Auditor-General made an inquiry into the management of the Mangawhai community wastewater scheme—a situation that my colleague Andrew Williams and New Zealand First have taken a particular interest in going there on many occasions to support that community and to actually listen to their concerns as opposed to ramrodding through legislation to approve past errors. And the Office of the Auditor-General found that the Kaipara District Council had failed to attend to its fundamental legal and accountability obligations through poor record-keeping decision-making governance and management arrangements.Recently in March 2014 the Auditor-General carried out an inquiry into the property investments by Delta Utility Services Ltd a council-controlled trading organisation of Dunedin City Council. The Mayor of Dunedin had asked for the inquiry after some Dunedin taxpayers alleged impropriety around the property investments atLuggatenearWānaka in mid-2008 and at Jacks Point near Queenstown in mid-2009. The Auditor-General found no evidence of impropriety or of poorly managed conflicts of interest in relation to either investment. However the Auditor-General did find some breaches of the Local Government Act 2002 and the Companies Act 1993 and instances of Delta Utility Services using artificial business structures to avoid public accountability.These are the types of reports that are essential to holding the Government and State sector agencies accountable to the New Zealand public. The Office of the Ombudsmen has also done excellent work. It is thanks to New Zealand First that the parents of children in charter schools still have the protection of the Office of the Ombudsmen should these schools choose to try to shuttle their children out the back door.In December 2013 the Chief Ombudsman released her joint report with the Privacy Commissioner on the Earthquake Commission’s compliance with its obligations under the Official Information Act and the Privacy Act when responding to requests for information from its Canterbury customers. It was found that the Earthquake Commission failed to fulfil its obligations to provide information to requesters due to an overcomplicated and risk-averse approach to responding to information requests and a tendency to be reactive rather than proactive in the dissemination of claim-related information. Accordingly the Ombudsman was able to make a number of recommendations to the Earthquake Commission on how to improve its systems and processes.New Zealand First welcomes legislation for regular environmental reporting under the new Environmental Reporting Bill but we share the concerns recently expressed by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment. There is a concern that this bill will compromise the ability of the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment and other Officers of Parliament to ensure the accountability of Government officials. Another clause in the bill allows Government Ministers to decide what is and what is not to be reported on. It is not necessary to be a rocket scientist to see that if you do not want an embarrassing answer about a Government policy then you do not ask a question. It is our view that this undermines the independence that is vital for public trust. However New Zealand First believes that it is of the utmost importance that we protect the integrity of all Officers of Parliament and accordingly New Zealand First supports this motion. Kia ora.