Hon Nathan Guy
Minister of Internal Affairs
Minister Responsible for the National Library
Minister Responsible for Archives New Zealand

11 December 2010

Media Statement

Minister welcomes State Sector legislation

Legislation to improve parts of the state sector has been welcomed by Nathan Guy, the Minister Responsible for Archives New Zealand, the National Library and Internal Affairs.

The National Library of New Zealand (Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa) Amendment Act and the Public Records Amendment Act have passed their final readings in Parliament today, paving the way for the three departments to integrate on 1 February 2011.

“The integration of these three departments is an important step in delivering better public services more efficiently.

“Archives New Zealand and the National Library will soon have access to a greater range of resources and expertise within the Department of Internal Affairs. This will be particularly important as they continue their good work on digitisation and making more information available online for New Zealanders.

“The major roles and functions of these departments are unchanged, and I’m pleased that the statutory roles of the Chief Archivist and National Librarian are preserved and protected.

“This is confirmed by the publicly available Crown Law opinion which says the legislation ‘increases the level of statutory independence enjoyed by the Chief Archivist.’

“The National Library and Archives New Zealand are iconic institutions with an exciting future. They will continue to be trusted and preserved for future generations to enjoy.

“The Government has backed this up with some major investment over the last two years, including $52 million for the modernisation of the National Library and $12.6 million into creating a Government Digital Archive.”

The full Crown Law opinion and further background information is available at http://www.integration.dia.govt.nz

ends

© Scoop Media