Overseas travel by government employees of Callaghan Fund & NZ Trade ad Enterprise
Perry Richardson made this Official Information request to Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
This request has an unknown status. We're waiting for Perry Richardson to read recent responses and update the status.
From: Perry Richardson
Dear Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment,
Numerous social media post suggest that the Callaghan Fund is frequently used to organise international trade delegations as well as to have Callaghan Fund General Managers attend New Zealand Trade & Enterprise study tours. See the following posts:
- AG Tech Sillicon Valley - https://callaghaninnovation.wordpress.co...
- Maori to Sillicon Valley - https://callaghaninnovation.wordpress.co...
- General Manager in New York - https://callaghaninnovation.wordpress.co...
Questions:
- Why does the Callaghan Fund organise it's own trade delegations? How does that differ from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment , Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade etc?
- What is the overlap?
- Why does Callaghan Fund senior staff attend New Zealand Trade and Enterprise study tours to the States?
- What are/were the budgets for these international trade delegations organised by the Callaghan Fund.
- What where the selection criteria for businesses & individuals?
- How many business, business staf did go and how much funding was provided for each.
- How much government staff (Callaghan, Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment,, NZ Trade and Enterprse etc) did accompany these missions
Yours faithfully,
Perry Richardson
From: *OIA
Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
Dear Perry,
Please find attached your acknowledgement, regarding your recent information request.
Kind Regards,
Ministerial Services
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment
Level 4 , Stout Street, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
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From: *OIA
Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
Dear Perry,
Please refer to the enclosed letter informing you that your request has been transferred to Callaghan Innovation. Could you please confirm receipt of this email.
Kind regards,
Ministerial Services
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment
Level 4 , Stout Street, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
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From: Perry Richardson
Dear *OIA, / Ministerial Services
I have received your email and am looking forward to the answers by Callaghan.
Yours sincerely,
Perry Richardson
From: Perry Richardson
Dear Ministerial Services,
I was wondering what the status of this request was, I have not seen any response from Callaghan Innovation after the request was transferred to them.
I was expecting a response within 20 working days.
Yours sincerely,
Perry
From: Ministerial Services
Thank you for your query.
Our records show that your request was transferred to Callaghan Innovation
from MBIE on Wednesday 8 June 2016.
From the calculations table on the Ombudsman’s website it shows that your
response is due by COP today.
We have had an extensive consultation process to ensure we were able to
answer your questions.
You can expect a response later today.
Kind Regards
Liz
Liz Pokia
Ministerial & Governance Support Advisor
Policy and Planning Team
External Relations Group
DDI: +64 4 931 3905
Cellphone: +64 027 808 2831
EMAIL: [1][email address]
0800 4 CALLAGHAN (0800 422 552)
[2]www.callaghaninnovation.govt.nz
[3]cid:image002.jpg@01CE345B.F4D26320
Rukuhia te wāhi ngaro, hei maunga tātai whetū
(Explore the unknown, pursue excellence)
See what we are all about – read our current quarterly e-zine
[4]Accelerate April 2016
[5]www.callaghaninnovation.govt.nz
show quoted sections
From: Ministerial Services
Dear Mr Richardson
Please find attached our response to your questions that you requested
under the Official Information Act.
Kind regards
Liz Pokia
Ministerial & Governance Support Advisor
Policy and Planning Team
External Relations Group
DDI: +64 4 931 3905
Cellphone: +64 027 808 2831
EMAIL: [1][email address]
0800 4 CALLAGHAN (0800 422 552)
[2]www.callaghaninnovation.govt.nz
[3]cid:image002.jpg@01CE345B.F4D26320
Rukuhia te wâhi ngaro, hei maunga tâtai whetû
(Explore the unknown, pursue excellence)
See what we are all about – read our current quarterly e-zine
[4]Accelerate April 2016
[5]www.callaghaninnovation.govt.nz
show quoted sections
From: Perry Richardson
Dear Ministerial Services,
Thank you for providing some of the information I requested. It is appreciated and helped me understand these trips better.
Nevertheless, I noted the following:
1) The figures for the Ag Tech mission seem to be incomplete and seem not add up. The letter mentions that the mission had a budget of $87,000 of which $61,000 was for participating businesses and USD 35,000 for the SV Forum (which is more than $45,000). This adds up to $106,000, which is more than 20% above budget. Is that correct? It also seems not to take the travel & accommodation cost for the 3 Callaghan staff into account. Can you please provide the full costs as requested, including this component?
2) The costs for the Stanford mission seem not to take the travel & accommodation cost for the three Callaghan staff into account. Can you please provide the full costs, including this component?
3) There are no cost listed for the Callaghan participation in the Better By Design mission. Can you please confirm if this is correct? I would also be keen to understand what businesses went on this mission and what were the selection criteria used.
Looking forward to a swift response
Perry
From: Ministerial Services
Dear Mr Richardson
Thank you for your email of 8 July with further questions regarding the
response you received from Callaghan Innovation on 4 July 2016.
Part of question three cannot be answered by Callaghan Innovation and is
transferred to New Zealand Trade and Enterprise to answer. The letter is
attached.
You can expect a response to your first two questions and the first part
of question three very soon.
Regards
Dee Aston
OIA Advisor
[1]cid:image002.jpg@01CE345B.F4D26320
Rukuhia te wâhi ngaro, hei maunga tâtai whetû
(Explore the unknown, pursue excellence)
See what we are all about – read our current quarterly e-zine
[2]Accelerate April 2016
[3]www.callaghaninnovation.govt.nz
show quoted sections
From: Ministerial Services
Good morning Mr Richardson
Please find attached the response to your first two questions and part of
question three that you asked on 8 July 2016.
Regards
Dee Aston
OIA Advisor
[1]cid:image002.jpg@01CE345B.F4D26320
Rukuhia te wâhi ngaro, hei maunga tâtai whetû
(Explore the unknown, pursue excellence)
See what we are all about – read our current quarterly e-zine
[2]Accelerate April 2016
[3]www.callaghaninnovation.govt.nz
show quoted sections
From: Perry Richardson
Dear Ministerial Services,
Thank you for the additional answers. It provides some of the missing details.
However, I am still confused mainly due to the significant amount of partial answers and back and forth referrals between the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, NZ Trade and Enterprise and the Callaghan.
Can you (or the ministry) please clarify exactly how much did Callaghan spend in total on this Agri Tech conference?
- The budget for the Agri Tech conference is quoted as $87,000 (email of the 6th of July) - of which $61,000 went to the participating businesses, $11,597 for travel for Callaghan staff, leaving almost $14,000 for the other items mentioned in the email of the 19th of July.
- You stated (email on the 19th of July) that the $35,000 USD was not part of this budget(?) but it was mentioned for the sake of completeness as related cost. This seems to suggest it was not paid by Callaghan?
- You stated previously (email of the 6th of July) that Callaghan funded the $35,000 USD.
So did Callaghan fund in total roughly $132,000 for this conference? That is the sum of $87,000 + $35,000 USD ( > $45,000).
Yours sincerely,
Perry
From: Derek Williamson -WLG
Hi Perry
RE: OIA 2016-17-3 BBD Mission October 2015
On Monday 18 July NZTE received the partial transfer of an Official
Information Act 1982 (the Act) request from Callaghan Innovation in
regards to your request to them of 8 July.
You have requested from NZTE the following information:
o What businesses went on the Better By Design study tour mission in
October 2015 and what were the selection criteria used
We will respond to your request as soon as reasonably practicable and
within 20 working days of 18 July 2016 in accordance with the Act.
Yours sincerely,
Derek Williamson
This e-mail message, together with any attachments, is for the intended
recipient only and may not be disclosed to any other person. If you are
not the intended recipient and you have received or seen this message
through an error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the
email from your system. Unauthorised use or disclosure of the message, or
the information it contains, may be unlawful.
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise accepts no responsibility for changes
made to this email or to any attachments after transmission from New
Zealand Trade and Enterprise. The information contained in this email,
together with any attachments, does not necessarily represent the official
view of New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. It is your responsibility to
check this email and any attachments for viruses.
===================================================================================================
From: Ministerial Services
Good afternoon Mr Richardson
Attached is the response to your 19 July email.
regards
Dee Aston
[1]cid:image002.jpg@01CE345B.F4D26320
Rukuhia te wâhi ngaro, hei maunga tâtai whetû
(Explore the unknown, pursue excellence)
See what we are all about – read our current quarterly e-zine
[2]Accelerate April 2016
[3]www.callaghaninnovation.govt.nz
show quoted sections
From: Derek Williamson -WLG
Hi Perry
RE: OIA 2016-17-3 BBD Mission October 2015
Please find attached a response in regards to your request of 18 July
2016.
Yours sincerely
Derek Williamson
This e-mail message, together with any attachments, is for the intended
recipient only and may not be disclosed to any other person. If you are
not the intended recipient and you have received or seen this message
through an error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the
email from your system. Unauthorised use or disclosure of the message, or
the information it contains, may be unlawful.
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise accepts no responsibility for changes
made to this email or to any attachments after transmission from New
Zealand Trade and Enterprise. The information contained in this email,
together with any attachments, does not necessarily represent the official
view of New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. It is your responsibility to
check this email and any attachments for viruses.
===================================================================================================
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