Smith Lockwood: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Smith Lockwood: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Sitting date: 19 June 2008. Volume:647;Page:16758. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
5.  
Dr the Hon LOCKWOOD SMITH (National—Rodney) 
 to the  
Minister of Immigration 
: On what date did the Minister of Immigration first advise the Minister of State Services formally or informally that an inquiry was being conducted by David Oughton into unlawful decision-making involving the head of the Immigration Service? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN (Leader of the House) 
 on behalf of the  
Minister of Immigration 
: Information was conveyed at officials’ level. I am advised that the then chief executive of the Department of Labour gave the State Services Commission an informal heads-up when the audit process first found issues around the application matter and it became clear that an investigation was necessary. Later the then acting chief executive gave a further heads-up that David Oughton would be conducting the investigation. 
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith 
: Is it correct that the State Services Commission has some responsibility for maintaining public confidence in the wider State Service; if so why did the Minister of Immigration not alert the Minister of State Services about such a major issue as an investigation into unlawful decision-making involving the head of the Immigration Service when the Minister had been briefed on the inquiry in April and August last year? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: On the first matter clearly the Minister of Immigration is not responsible for that matter. 
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith 
: Why after at least three briefings last year on an inquiry into unlawful decision-making involving the head of the Immigration Service did the Minister of Immigration not ask any further questions when yesterday the State Services Commissioner told the Finance and Expenditure Committee that if he had been familiar with the content of the Oughton report last year he absolutely would have asked further questions? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: The member tries to draw an illogical connection between ministerial knowledge and the fact that the State Services Commissioner chose not to take certain action. 
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith 
: Is the Minister telling the House that the three chief executives of the Department of Labour—James Buwalda Graham Fortune and Christopher Blake in that order—all overlooked two of the three recommendations in the Oughton report that required ministerial action and that all three told the Minister that the report covered only individual employee matters when the State Services Commissioner yesterday told the Finance and Expenditure Committee that when he became familiar with the content of the report he could see that it clearly did not relate only to employment matters but covered wider issues as well? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: Much of this ground has been covered before. But to take just one item on these matters the member will be aware that the new chief executive of the department Mr Blake sought to reopen matters and was told that he could not do so because they involved individual employment matters that had been settled. However of course subsequently the State Services Commission was involved in a review of those matters. 
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith 
: Can we get a clear answer on this; who actioned the first recommendation of the Oughton report when it was received in July last year that “these people need to have their applications”—that is for residence—”considered for special treatment as they have been disadvantaged” because that special treatment would have involved exceptions to residence policy? Who actioned that recommendation? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: I do not have information in front of me on that particular matter. I am advised that there are processes that need to be gone through as I understand it for special applications. The department itself does not have the power to refer that to the Minister.