More Curran emails likely to be released

Former communications minister Clare Curran says there ‘‘may be some more’’ emails between her and job applicant Derek Handley that have not been released.

Curran was fired from Cabinet over her failure to declare a meeting with Handley, a technologist who was applying for a highlypaid government IT position.

She later resigned as a minister after failing to adequately defend use of her private Gmail account for government business, citing ‘‘intolerable’’ pressure.

When Curran was fired from Cabinet, she proactively released a chain of emails, texts, and Twitter direct messages between her and Handley about the meeting.

But one of Handley’s emails indicates that other communications may have been exchanged, at one point saying he appreciated Curran might not have the time to respond to his ‘‘emails’’.

It’s also not clear where Handley got Curran’s mobile number or direct instructions on how to access the Beehive after-hours, when the meeting took place.

When asked yesterday if she had released all of her emails with Handley, Curran said ‘‘there may be some more’’.

Curran said she was archiving all of her Gmail messages that were related to ministerial matters and they would be discoverable to journalists under the Official Information Act.

She wouldn’t comment on the content of the emails as she was still undergoing this process.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern sought Cabinet Office advice on the use of personal emails.

There is no direct rule against ministers using personal email accounts for official work, and several ministers have done so in the past. But all of these emails must be discoverable under the Official Information Act.

A spokeswoman for Handley said he had no comment.

Meanwhile, according to an informed source, it has emerged that Handley was offered the $400,000 job as the country’s first national chief technology officer by the Government, raising the question of whether he could be entitled to compensation if the appointment is not confirmed.

State Services Minister Chris Hipkins refused to comment, or rule out the possibility of compensation. The recruitment process remains in limbo.