Report secret as AG leaves

A report into Auditor-General Martin Matthews’ actions as head of the Transport Ministry will not be made public after he resigned hours before its expected release.

Matthews was head of the Ministry of Transport during the time Joanne Harrison carried out fraud on taxpayers to the tune of $725,000. Harrison was jailed for three years and seven months in February.

The report by Sir Maarten Wevers into how the ministry handled the fraud was being considered by the Officers of Parliament committee when Matthews’ resignation came in writing to Speaker David Carter.

Carter said the committee, which had representatives from National, Labour, Greens, NZ First and the Maori Party, had decided unanimously not to release the report.

‘‘We had received a substantial report from Mr Wevers and a substantial rebuttal from Martin Matthews. Then as we were working through the whole issue he tenders his resignation and the committee said there’s no point in going any further in analysing the report.’’

In a statement Matthews said he had tendered his resignation as Controller and Auditor-General.

‘‘The issues and speculation about how I handled matters in relation to the fraud committed on the Ministry of Transport during my term as CEO have made it untenable for me to continue in this role.

‘‘I deeply regret and apologise for the fraud that was committed by an accomplished fraudster when I was Secretary for Transport, prior to my appointment as Controller and Auditor-General,’’ he said. ‘‘I wished it had never happened but I accept I am accountable for everything done in and by the ministry when I was CEO and I am ultimately responsible.’’

MPs on the committee had decided unanimously to review Matthews’ position in response to a request from him to do so, and Matthews agreed to stand aside while it was completed.

The report was finalised in June but it was not officially ‘‘received’’ by the committee while Matthews was given the opportunity to comment on its findings.

The only information made public in relation to the review is a two-page briefing from the committee to Parliament.

It notes Matthews ‘‘tendered his resignation in writing . . . with immediate effect’’. ‘‘His resignation therefore brings to an end the matter before us.’’ ●➤ Editorial comment A12

AThe Harrison affair and its fallout have blighted Matthews’ 36-year career.

uditor-General Martin Matthews simply could not stay in his position. His decision to resign from the role hours before the expected release of a damning report into a Ministry of Transport fraud by Joanne Harrison, committed under his watch, was inevitable. In a statement yesterday Matthews said his position was ‘‘untenable’’. The fact was it was untenable months ago.

Matthews headed the ministry while Harrison was committing a $725,000 fraud for which she was eventually convicted and jailed. Even after being made aware of her wrongdoing, he was still full of praise for Harrison’s work as a senior manager within the ministry.

Given the ongoing multiple investigations into Harrison and the MoT, his appointment as auditor-general – a position that requires independent reporting on how your taxes and rates are spent – should never have gone ahead.

The Harrison affair and its fallout have blighted Matthews’ 36-year career in the public service, which included a decade as chief executive at the Ministry of Culture and Heritage, time in the Audit Office, and eight years as assistant Auditor-General in the 1990s, before moving to the Transport Ministry in 2008.

Harrison’s fraud has often been described as ‘‘sophisticated’’, but her behaviour and actions were flagged to Matthews multiple times.

The Dominion Post broke the story of Harrison’s offending in July last year. Even after she was found guilty and jailed Matthews said he was comfortable with the way he had handled things.

Then a report by the State Services Commission exonerated the MoT whistleblowers who were made redundant. The SSC said they should be offered compensation for their poor treatment.

Finally, the hammer blow – the report by Sir Maarten Wevers into how the ministry handled the fraud.

Wevers, who did not release the full report, instead putting out a briefing document, said ’’his [Matthews’] resignation therefore brings to an end the matter before us.’’

If only it were that clearcut. The convenient timing of Matthews’ resignation does not tie this scandal up with a nice, little bow.

The Wevers review was to look into Matthews’ suitability for the auditor-general’s position, yet none of the details look like they will see the light of day.

No-one is coming out of this mess looking good. Harrison is where she belongs – behind bars – for defrauding and misleading taxpayers while in a position of trust. The MPs who chose to ignore the red flags of Matthews’ past should be sighing with relief that the details around their decision to appoint him haven’t been made public.

Even Wevers gets dragged into it. As the Public Service Association said, ‘‘New Zealanders would surely like to understand his [Matthews’] reasons for stepping down, and how much was known about this fraud case during his appointment to the role.’’

Sadly, and somewhat ironically, that detail will not be accessible under the Official Information Act. Hardly a shining example of transparency that this case desperately needed for any real resolution to be reached.