Prebble Richard: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
Prebble Richard: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
[Volume:612;Page:9259] 
7.  
Hon RICHARD PREBBLE (Leader—ACT) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: Has the Prime Minister seen the State Services Commission report of the review of Te Puni Kokiri indicating “a systemic impediment to the business of government through the deterioration of the relationship between a Minister and his chief executive and senior officials” and a “lack of capability in the Ministry to support the constitutional mechanisms by which Parliament holds Ministers and thereby Government to account”; if so does the Prime Minister have confidence that any parliamentary question put down to the Minister regarding Te Puni Kokiri will be answered honestly and accurately? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN (Acting Prime Minister) 
: I have not yet had time to read the full report but I am aware of the conclusion. Yes I am sure that like all Ministers the Minister will answer honestly and accurately any questions to him based on the information available at the time. 
Hon Richard Prebble 
: Given that the report outlines that the Minister gave answers to the House to many of the questions put down by my colleague Rodney Hide that turned out to be wrong and that the report identifies that as being the result of not just management but honesty problems in the department why is the Prime Minister now so confident that everything has been fixed? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: From the brief glance I have had at the report the honesty issue raised was not relevant to situations within the department but related to Mr Te Rangi. 
Hon Richard Prebble 
: Does the correct interpretation of the recommendation that the State Services Commission role move from its review focus to a collaborative engagement with Te Puni Kokiri really mean that a Government department has in effect been put into statutory management; if so can she cite any case where a department has been put under the management of the State Services Commission? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: The department has not been put under the management of the States Service Commission. The State Services Commission will be working alongside the department to improve its performance. 
Gerry Brownlee 
: Given that the report talks about “a systemic impediment to the business of Government through the deterioration of the relationship between a Minister and his chief executive and senior officials” why are the chief executive and the senior officials still in their jobs? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: Governments do not go around sacking the chief executives of Government departments in the way the member seems to imply. I am sure that if they did we would hear cries about the dismissal of Government chief executives and their replacement by the politically correct cronies of various Ministers. 
Hon Richard Prebble 
: Can the House take from the reply just given that the reason that the officials have not been sacked is that the Government does not have the power to do that? But the Prime Minister does have the power to sack the Minister—who was criticised indirectly over the deterioration of the relationship between him and his officials—so why is the Minister still in his job? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: It is clear that the Minister gave honest answers based on the information made available to him. Some of the information that caused difficulties came from a person who was clearly not honest. The Minister is not responsible for that.