Chris
HIPKINS
Education Spokesperson

12 March 2013 MEDIA STATEMENT

Taxpayers deserve more than ‘don’t know’

The National government has displayed total arrogance and contempt for the New Zealand public in its on-going refusal to answer questions about the resignation and $425,000 pay-out to former Secretary of Education Lesley Longstone, Labour's Education spokesperson Chris Hipkins says.

"On the same day as the government confirmed it is using debt collectors to chase up teachers who have been overpaid, the Minister for State Services, Jonathan Coleman, has the audacity to answer questions on Ms Longstone’s pay-out with comments such as 'How would I know' and 'I don’t know’.

“The best John Key has come up with is ‘sometimes things just don't work out’.

“With $425,000 of taxpayer money being dished out to someone who was in the job for little more than a year, the public are entitled to better answers than they had had so far.

"Ms Longstone's golden handshake was signed-off by Ministers in John Key's government. The public are entitled to know why.

"A breakdown in the relationship between Hekia Parata and Lesley Longstone was cited as one of the reasons for her resignation, yet Ms Parata has consistently refused to front up and explain what the problems were.

"Hekia Parata was responsible for all the decisions that Ms Longstone has ultimately taken the fall for, and it's taxpayers who are now having to stump up for her incompetence.

"National’s arrogance and continued refusal to answer even the most basic questions about Ms Longstone's golden handshake show just how arrogant it has become.

“It is taxpayers’ money that is being dished out to cover-up the incompetence of ministers. Those same taxpayers are entitled to an explanation," Chris Hipkins says.

ENDS

© Scoop Media

Arguably Reassuring: Inspector-General Finds GCSB "Arguably" Legal

Of the 88 individuals:

• 15 cases involving 22 individuals did not have any information intercepted by GCSB.

• another four cases involving five individuals were the subjects of a New Zealand Security Intelligence Service warrant and the GCSB assisted in the execution of the warrants. The Inspector-General is of the view that there were arguably no breaches and the law is unclear.

• the Bureau only provided technical assistance which did not involve interception of communications, involving three of the individuals, so no breach occurred.

• the remaining cases involved the collection of metadata, and the Inspector-General formed the view that there had arguably been no breach, noting once again that the law is unclear.
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