The Public Service Commission’s review of government contracts with companies owned by family members of Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta found substandard practices across four public agencies but no evidence of bias.

In addition, the PSC found that some agencies whose contracts were reviewed followed processes that were “not well suited” to identifying the perceived conflicts of interest at an agency level, including the potential implications for ministers.

However, it found “no evidence of favouritism, bias, or undue influence over agency decisions in relation to KAS [Ka Awatea Services, owned by Gannin Ormsby] and KC [Kawai Catalyst, owned by Tamoko and Waimirirangi Ormsby] due to connection with the Minister”.

Gannin Ormsby is the husband of Mahuta. Tamoko Ormsby is Gannin Ormsby’s nephew, Waimirirangi Ormsby is Tamoko Ormsby’s wife.

The review noted that while the actions of ministers, directors of KAS and KC, and members of the public were outside its scope, it “did not identify any matter that would require referral to another oversight body”.

Before the report’s release, Mahuta said she welcomed the review and had initiated it because she was “concerned at the way in which government departments were dealing with the matters”.

Details of contracts between the companies of family members of Mahuta and four public agencies, and the political fallout, prompted first the Opposition and then the Government to ask the PSC to look into the matter.

The Herald first reported on the contracts in May; the PSC probe (shy of a formal review) was called in September.

The National Party’s spokesman for the Public Service, Simeon Brown, said the report “exposed serious flaws” in how the Public Service deals with conflicts of interest.

He said the report indicated that a “culture of carelessness” exists in the way public agencies procure services and manage perceived conflicts of interest, which he said undermines public confidence.

The review noted the agencies concerned - the Ministry for the Environment (MfE), Department of Conservation (DoC), Kāinga Ora, and Te Puni Kōkiri/the Ministry for Māori Development - have taken steps to address specific issues, but it recommended that the Public Service Commissioner, Peter Hughes, seek an assurance that the wider recommendations of the review are adopted.

A series of government contracts related to two companies - KAS and KC - were signed with four government agencies in late 2020 and early 2021.

At the time the contracts were signed, Mahuta was an Associate Minister for three of the four public agencies involved: the Ministry for the Environment (MfE), Kāinga Ora, and Te Puni Kōkiri/the Ministry for Māori Development.

Officials say Mahuta had no responsibility for any of the related areas of operations.

The third contracting agency was the Department of Conservation (DoC), for which Mahuta has never held ministerial responsibility.

The contracts were worth a total of $230,000 (excluding GST). One contract was a grant, the others were for services and awarded on a sole source basis. The DoC contract was incomplete when it was closed, and the value was never fully paid.

No purview over politicians

The purpose of the review was to determine whether Public Service agencies had “appropriately identified, assessed, managed and documented any conflict of interest in their contractual relationships with KAS and or KC or their directors [Gannin Ormsby, Tamoko Ormsby, and Waimirirangi Ormsby]” the PSC said in September.

The scope of the review expressly excluded the examination of any individual appointments by the Cabinet or employment agreements, including Waimirirangi Ormsby’s 2019 appointment to the working group which produced the contentious He Puapua report, a roadmap of ideas to achieve Māori self-determination.

Goverment documents indicate that Minister Mahuta selected Waimirirangi Ormsby for the shortlist of candidates for the working group that was approved by the Cabinet’s Appointment and Honours Committee.

Mahuta declared the relationship to the committee, however it remains contentious because the Cabinet Manual appears to recommend more thoroughgoing treatment than a simple declaration of the conflict.

Mahuta has previously said she has been “assiduous” in declaring and managing potential conflicts of interest.