Dame Jenny Shipley tells court Mainzeal was careful
AUCKLAND: Dame Jenny Shipley appeared in court yesterday to defend her actions before the collapse of the construction company Mainzeal.
The former prime minister is one of the six exdirectors of the failed business who are accused of mismanaging Mainzeal resulting in a loss to creditors of $117 million.
Dame Jenny told the High Court at Auckland that the Mainzeal board was diligent and careful in the circumstances they faced at the time.
‘‘We kept the interests of Mainzeal creditors, employees and customers firmly in mind at all times and endeavoured to protect their interests and avoid loss.’’
She outlined her CV, including her role of prime minister from December 1997 to December 1999.
She also highlighted the strong connections she had developed with China, in particular her role in New Zealand entering into a free trade agreement with China that was secured in 2008. It was for this reason that she became associated with Mainzeal’s parent company, Richina.
Dame Jenny appeared for less than 10 minutes before the court adjourned for lunch.
It has been claimed that Mainzeal gave millions of dollars in loans to an affiliated company and did not take appropriate steps to recoup debts when it was not paid.
The directors had been counting on Mainzeal’s parent company, Richina, to provide the finance it needed, but this never happened.
It continued to take on large construction contracts, while leaky building claims against Mainzeal stacked up.
The plaintiffs’ lawyers argue Mainzeal’s directors should have put the company into liquidation long before 2013. — RNZ