Inquiry reports

A list of the reports produced outside of the Office's scheduled work programme, as a result of the Auditor-General's decision to inquire into a public entity's use of resources.
Inquiry into certain aspects of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

December 2005: This audit and inquiry followed a request for assurance from the then Associate Minister of Education (Tertiary Education). There were concerns about possible conflicts of interest in transactions worth large sums of money. Other issues emerged as we began our inquiry...

Electricity Commission: Contracting with service providers

July 2005: This report describes events leading up to the decision to appoint contractors, and analyses the practices followed. It also sets out our expectations of public entities involved in sole source procurement in circumstances where contestable procurement is impracticable...

Department of Conservation: Administration of the Conservation Services Programme

December 2002: We conducted this inquiry as a result of a complaint from a body that represents the interests of its shareholding fishing companies and associations. The complaint was supported by specific case studies illustrating the body’s concerns about the way that the Department of Conservation manages the Conservation Services Programme...

Ministry of Health: Progress in Implementing the Recommendations of the Cervical Screening Inquiry

February 2002: The Ministerial Inquiry into the under-reporting of cervical smear abnormalities in the Gisborne Region raised some serious concerns about whether the National Cervical Screening Programme is as effective as it could be. The Committee of Inquiry’s report, released in April 2001, made recommendations for future action to improve the Programme. We examined the progress made and the work remaining to be done to implement the Committee of Inquiry’s recommendations...

Ministry of Defence: Acquisition of Light Armoured Vehicles and Light Operational Vehicles

August 2001: We have compiled this report from the markedly divergent views of the MoD, the NZDF and Army. Documentary evidence was often poor. Key decisions were often not recorded. Nevertheless, we feel that we have assembled a compelling picture that illustrates problems in the key areas of governance, relationships, accountabilities, and defence planning...

Thames Coromandel District Council: Asset Registers and Other Matters

July 2001: This report contains our findings regarding a complaint made by the Concerned Citizens of the Coromandel Peninsula about certain actions of the Thames Coromandel District Council. Although the complaint raised over 50 issues, our report addresses only those issues that we considered to be most significant...

Parliamentary Salaries, Allowances and Other Entitlements

July 2001: The systems, policies, and procedures applying to salaries, allowances and other entitlements of MPs and Ministers have not always been guided by a clear set of principles or desired outcomes. We propose five principles to guide improvements to the current regime, and we present three possible options for change...

Members of Parliament: Accommodation allowances for living in Wellington

March 2001: This report examines the respective roles and responsibilities of the Higher Salaries Commission, the Parliamentary Service, and the Department of Internal Affairs in relation to accommodation entitlements; considers the specific cases of Marian Hobbs MP and Phillida Bunkle MP in relation to the Wellington accommodation allowance; and examines the circumstances in which a Ministerial residence was allocated to Ms Bunkle after her appointment as a Minister in 1999...

Airways Corporation of New Zealand Limited: Review of Certain Matters Concerning the National Air Traffic Services (UK) Consortium

June 2000: This report concerns the proposed involvement of Airways Corporation of New Zealand Limited in a consortium formed to bid for a portion of the National Air Traffic Services organisation based in the United Kingdom. The consortium transaction gave rise to potential conflicts of interest on the part of three senior executives. Moreover, the Board’s management of the potential conflicts of interest became the subject of serious allegations of impropriety...

Inquiry into certain events concerning the New Zealand Tourism Board

April 1999: This report examines the appointments of, payments to, and resignations of, Messrs Mogridge and Wall. Events affecting the issues addressed in this report are complex and span a lengthy period. To fully understand these events the report needs to be read in its entirety – especially the historical perspective set out in Parts 1 to 3, and Part 8 on governance issues...