Curran’s ‘minimum’ sanction questioned
WELLINGTON: Senior National MP Gerry Brownlee says Clare Curran has had only the minimum sanction imposed over her failure to properly declare a meeting she had with a tech entrepreneur.
Ms Curran has been removed from Cabinet and stripped of her Government Digital Services portfolio and her Open Govern ment responsibilities, after she failed to record the meeting with Derek Handley in her diary.
The pair met to discuss the Government’s chief technology officer job.
But Ms Curran’s staff and officials did not know about the meeting and it was left out of an answer to a recent written parliamentary question.
Ms Curran has failed to respect ministerial boundaries, Mr Brownlee said.
‘‘It’s pretty sad for the people caught up in that appointment process. The minister herself has had, I think, minimum sanction for what was pretty sloppy sort of work.’’
The State Services Com mission will be reviewing the chief technology officer appointment before any announcements are made.
Ms Curran keeps her broadcasting and ACC portfolios.
Act New Zealand leader David Seymour said the Prime Minister should have taken a tougher stance on Clare Curran’s failure to properly declare a meeting for a second time.
Earlier this year, Ms Curran came under fire for a meeting she had with RNZ’s former head of news, Carol Hirschfeld.
Mr Seymour is questioning why, in light of this second offence, Clare Curran is still a minister outside cabinet, and retains her broadcasting and ACC portfolios. — NZME