Whanau Ora Commissioning Agency Accountability
S. Paurini made this Official Information request to Nanaia Mahuta
Response to this request is long overdue. By law Nanaia Mahuta should have responded by now (details and exceptions). The requester can complain to the Ombudsman.
      From: S. Paurini
      
    
    Dear Nanaia Mahuta,
Can you explain why Whanau Ora is not able to be held publicly accountable for the public funding it receives every year?
Why, for example, is it not able to be subject to the Official Information Act? 
I have asked through your associate, Mr Henare and through your ministry, for information regarding how the money that agency receives is spent.
I want to see how, if at all, our genuinely needful whanau and communities are being served by Whanau Ora.
Because of my experience and the experiences of other whanau, I believe most Maori aren't being supported well - or at all.
I want to see what the $70m per year is being spent on.
As a Maori and as a citizen I urge you to require the Whanau Ora Agency to be subject to public scrutiny. This is in the best interests of Maori and our NZ population.
Yours faithfully,
S. Paurini
        From: Ilaise Laukau
      
    
    Tēnā koe
On behalf of Hon Nanaia Mahuta, thank you for correspondence of 13 February 2020 regarding funding for Whānau Ora.
The matters you raise relate more closely to the portfolio responsibilities of Hon Peeni Henare. Your correspondence has therefore been transferred and accepted by his office for consideration.
Ngā mihi
Ilaise
Private Secretary (Admin) - Māori Development | Office of Hon Nanaia Mahuta
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      From: S. Paurini
      
    
    Dear Ilaise Laukau,
I've written to Mr Henare, he doesn't respond. Ms Mahuta should respond because her ministry funds Whanau Ora. 
Yours sincerely,
S. Paurini
        From: Madeline Smith
      
    
    Tēnā koe Seann
 
I refer to your information request below. Your email has been forwarded
 to Te Puni Kōkiri for a response.
 
The Official Information Act (the Act) only applies to government
 agencies, as listed in Schedule 1, Part 1 of the Act, organisations other
 than local organisations listed in Schedule 1, Part 2 of the Act and local
 organisations listed in Schedule 1, Part 3 of the Act.
 
Whānau Ora is a revolutionary public sector initiative because it devolves
 the delivery of Whānau Ora services to community-based commissioning
 agencies. Delivering Whānau Ora through non-governmental organisations
 means decision-making happens within the communities that are being
 supported. It allows the use of local knowledge and gives freedom to adapt
 to issues happening within the community to help grow local solutions.
 
The Whanau Ora Review Report – Tipu Mātoro ki te Ao affirms that this
 unique approach is working well for Māori and Pacific families. You can
 read the report here
 [1]https://www.tpk.govt.nz/en/whakamahia/wh...
 
Due to the unique devolved commissioning model, the commissioning agencies
 are held accountable to the Crown for performance and expenditure of
 public funds through their contracts with Te Puni Kōkiri. Te Puni Kōkiri
 has an important role in monitoring Whānau Ora as a unique public service
 model.
There are a range of mechanisms used by Te Puni Kōkiri to monitor
 commissioning agencies performance including:
 
•           Outcome agreements and variations
•           Letters of Expectation
•           Annual Investment Plans
•           Quarterly Reports
•           Annual Reports
•           Incentive Payments
 
The Annual Reports of each commissioning agency are publicly available on
 their respective websites, and copies of the annual budget confirmation
 letters are available for download from the Te Puni Kōrkiri website here:
[2]Whānau Ora Commissioning Agencies – Budget Confirmation Letters PDF
 (1.7MB).  
 
As advised, we will respond to your request dated 21 January 2020 for
 information related to the Whānau Ora Commissioning Agency funding, and
 information related to John Tamihere and other named individuals, no later
 than 27 March 2020. Further documents in the bulleted list above are
 currently being considered for release to you, in full or in part, as part
 of our response.
 
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of
 this response. Information about how to make a complaint is available at
 [3]www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone 0800 802 602.
 
Ngā mihi
 
Madeline
 
 
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
 | Tauwaea DDI : +64 4 819 6254 | Waea |
 | Madeline Smith Pūkoro M : +64 27 298 5141 |
 | Senior Advisor | Kaitohu Waea Whakaahua F : 0800 875 329 | |
 | Tōmua Paetukutuku W : [4]www.tpk.govt.nz |
 |  Te Puni Kōkiri, National     Te Puni Kōkiri, Te Puni Kōkiri House,|
 | Office 143 Lambton Quay, Wellington 6011, |
 |   New Zealand |
 | PO Box 3943, Wellington 6140, New |
 | Zealand |
 +------------------------------------------------------------------------+
 
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      From: S. Paurini
      
    
    Dear Nanaia Mahuta,
I still need a response to my request. I understand this is an unusual time most of us are going through but can you please address my request.
Yours faithfully,
S. Paurini
        From: N Mahuta (MIN)
        Nanaia Mahuta
      
    
    Thank you for your email. Due to the high volume of enquiries at this
 time, my team will be triaging issues related to COVID19 in the first
 instance.
I appreciate your patience at this time and will get back to you as soon
 as I can.
 
Ngā mihi
 
  
Office of Hon Nanaia Mahuta MP
 Reception +64 4 817 6867 | Ministerial Email
 [1][Nanaia Mahuta request email] | Web [2]beehive.govt.nz | Postal Freepost
 Parliament, Private Bag 18 041, Parliament Buildings, Wellington 6160, New
 Zealand
 
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