Criteria Approved Organisations
Grace Haden made this Official Information request to Meka Whaitiri
Meka Whaitiri did not have the information requested.
From: Grace Haden
Dear Meka Whaitiri,
this OIA relates to
section 122 of the animal welfare act sets out the criteria for approved organisations
122 (1) (d) requires that the employment contracts or arrangements between the organisation and the organisation’s inspectors are such that, having regard to the interests of the public, the organisation is suitable to be declared to be an approved organisation
The RNZSPCA has changed its constitution and the manner in which it functions the public no longer have assurances that the contract arrangements fulfil the requirements of the above section as Kevin Plowright has taken prosecution action in the name of the Royal society for the prevention of cruelty to animals( Auckland )
As this is neither the RNZSPCA nor the Auckland SPCA , we request a copy of the employment contract for Kevin Plowright and documents which show that his actions in brining some 79 charges against Janine Wallace and Barbara Glover had proper oversight by a superior /supervisor and went through independent oversight and assessment before charges were laid .
Yours faithfully,
Grace Haden
From: M Whaitiri (MIN)
Meka Whaitiri
Dear Grace,
On behalf of Hon Meka Whaitiri, we acknowledge receipt of your official information request dated 12 Nov 2020 for,
'This relates to section 122 of the animal welfare act sets out the criteria for approved organisations
122 (1) (d) requires that the employment contracts or arrangements between the organisation and the organisation’s inspectors are such that, having regard to the interests of the public, the organisation is suitable to be declared to be an approved organisation
The RNZSPCA has changed its constitution and the manner in which it functions the public no longer have assurances that the contract arrangements fulfil the requirements of the above section as Kevin Plowright has taken prosecution action in the name of the Royal society for the prevention of cruelty to animals( Auckland ) As this is neither the RNZSPCA nor the Auckland SPCA , we request a copy of the employment contract for Kevin Plowright and documents which show that his actions in brining some 79 charges against Janine Wallace and Barbara Glover had proper oversight by a superior /supervisor and went through independent oversight and assessment before charges were laid .
We received your request on 12 Nov 2020. We will endeavour to respond to your request as soon as possible and in any event no later than, being 20 working days after the day your request was received.
If we are unable to respond to your request by then, we will notify you of an extension of that timeframe.
If your OIA request requires full or part transfer, we will contact you within the required timeframe.
If any additional factors come to light which are relevant to your request, please do not hesitate to contact us so that these can be taken into account.
Yours Sincerely
Office Hon Meka Whaitiri
Associate Minister of Statistics; Associate Minister of Agriculture (Animal Welfare); Minister for Veterans;
Minister of Customs
P: +64 4 817 9011 : [Meka Whaitiri request email]
Bowen House Level 12L | Private Bag 18041 | Parliament Buildings | Wellington 6160 | New Zealand
Email disclaimer: Please note information about meetings or events related to the Minister’s portfolios will be proactively released (this does not include personal or constituency matters). For each meeting in scope, the summary would list: date, time (start and finish), brief description, location, who the meeting was with, and the portfolio. If you attend a meeting with the Minister on behalf of an organisation, the name of the organisation will be released. If you are a senior staff member at an organisation, or meet with the Minister in your personal capacity, your name may also be released. The location of the meeting will be released, unless it is a private residence. The proactive release will be consistent with the provisions in the Official Information Act, including privacy considerations. Under the Privacy Act 1993 you have the right to ask for a copy of any personal information we hold about you, and to ask for it to be corrected if you think it is wrong. If you’d like to ask for a copy of your information, or to have it corrected, or are concerned about the release of your information in the meeting disclosure, please contact the sender. You can read more about the proactive release policy at https://www.dia.govt.nz/Proactive-Releas...
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From: M Whaitiri (MIN)
Meka Whaitiri
Dear Grace,
We refer to your official information request dated 12 Nov 2020 for,
'This relates to section 122 of the animal welfare act sets out the criteria for approved organisations 122 (1) (d) requires that the employment contracts or arrangements between the organisation and the organisation’s inspectors are such that, having regard to the interests of the public, the organisation is suitable to be declared to be an approved organisation. The RNZSPCA has changed its constitution and the manner in which it functions the public no longer have assurances that the contract arrangements fulfil the requirements of the above section as Kevin Plowright has taken prosecution action in the name of the Royal society for the prevention of cruelty to animals( Auckland ) As this is neither the RNZSPCA nor the Auckland SPCA , we request a copy of the employment contract for Kevin Plowright and documents which show that his actions in brining some 79 charges against Janine Wallace and Barbara Glover had proper oversight by a superior /supervisor and went through independent oversight and assessment before charges were laid .
We have transferred your request to the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI.) The information to which your request relates, is not held by Office Hon Meka Whaitiri but is believed to be held by MPI.
In these circumstances, we are required by section 14 of the Official Information Act to transfer your request.
You will hear further from MPI concerning your request.
Yours sincerely,
Office Hon Meka Whaitiri
Associate Minister of Statistics; Associate Minister of Agriculture (Animal Welfare); Minister for Veterans;
Minister of Customs
P: +64 4 817 9011 : [Meka Whaitiri request email]
Bowen House Level 12L | Private Bag 18041 | Parliament Buildings | Wellington 6160 | New Zealand
Email disclaimer: Please note information about meetings or events related to the Minister’s portfolios will be proactively released (this does not include personal or constituency matters). For each meeting in scope, the summary would list: date, time (start and finish), brief description, location, who the meeting was with, and the portfolio. If you attend a meeting with the Minister on behalf of an organisation, the name of the organisation will be released. If you are a senior staff member at an organisation, or meet with the Minister in your personal capacity, your name may also be released. The location of the meeting will be released, unless it is a private residence. The proactive release will be consistent with the provisions in the Official Information Act, including privacy considerations. Under the Privacy Act 1993 you have the right to ask for a copy of any personal information we hold about you, and to ask for it to be corrected if you think it is wrong. If you’d like to ask for a copy of your information, or to have it corrected, or are concerned about the release of your information in the meeting disclosure, please contact the sender. You can read more about the proactive release policy at https://www.dia.govt.nz/Proactive-Releas...
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From: Official Information Act
Tēnā koe Grace
On behalf of Gary Orr, Director Compliance Services, please find attached
a response to your request.
Ngā mihi
Official Information Act Team
Government Services | Public Affairs
Ministry for Primary Industries | Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen
Street | PO Box 2526 | Wellington | New Zealand
Telephone: 0800 00 83 33 | Email: [1][email address] |
Web: [2]www.mpi.govt.nz
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1. mailto:[email address]
2. http://www.mpi.govt.nz/
From: Grace Haden
Dear Garry Orr
Thank you for your reply
The charges have been brought by the Royal society for the prevention of cruelty to animals( Auckland) which has no legal existence in New Zealand .
Plowright was employed by the Auckland SPCA society number 222889
THE ROYAL NEW ZEALAND SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF Cruelty TO ANIMALS is society number 218546 of which The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Auckland Incorporated (registration number 222889); is listed as a member on schedule 2 of the constitution
the requirement in 2017 for charges to be brought are set out as DECISION TO LAY INFORMATION(S)
In the event that an Inspector decides to lay information(s) in relation to a complaint under
the terms of this Agreement, he or she must first advise the Technical Liaison (or person
delegated by the Technical Liaison) and provide details of the information(s) including a
copy of the draft information(s) and any supporting documents.
It is apparent from the singular involvement of Mr Plowright and with so many charges filed in the name of a fictional organisation for a multitude of alleged offences which are unsupported with evidence that no "Technical Liaison" person has had oversight of the file .
It appears to that there is no requirement to report back to MPI and MPI effectively has no knowledge of the integrity of the prosecutions which are undertaken and what entity is taking them
The situation is such that based on the charges ,evidence and the use of the circumstances for fundraising and facilitation of activism (by branding legitimate dog breeders a puppy farm and relying on the evidence of self proclaimed self activist vet without independent corroboration) , That the question has to be raised with regards to the the accountability arrangements, financial arrangements, and management of the organisation , contracts and functions . section 122 b c and d http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/publi...
Plowright has left his employment but in law a legal entity is defined by its registration and the Auckland SPCA and the RNZSPCA are two separate legal entities and with a multitude of others use the generic term SPCA .
What is certain is that the prosecutor, the Rspca , has no legal existence in New Zealand and therefore no standing or right to use the name SPCA therefore this is not an SPCA prosecution
It appears that there has been no oversight of the prosecutions which have been brought under that name and it has been handed straight to the crown solicitor in Manukau as part of the pro bono team https://www.lawsociety.org.nz/news/lawta... contrary to section 16 of the crown solicitors terms of trade https://www.crownlaw.govt.nz/assets/Uplo...
This matter is of gross concern and this prosecution in itself is grounds for a review by MPI to report to the minister with regards to section 123 and the potential revocation of approved status .
The RNZSPCA has changed its constitution, its structure , but its constitution makes it quite clear that it consists of separate legal entities .
The RNZSPCA and Auckland SPCA are not bound to the OIA and even under the privacy act they avoid requests .
By way of example one of the charges is for failing to care for a ill animal the animal was sighted by the inspector on Thursday 12 October 2017 seized with others on the Friday 13 October 2017 The dog was taken to the council pound and then seen by a Safe activist vet 2 weeks later , no opportunity was provided for the defendants to have the animal examined by their own vet and the concerns were not raised with them before being charged
The findings of the vet on 27 October are the basis of the charge.
. One of the ladies was interview in November 2017 , a search warrant was executed in march 2018 and all their notes and computer research by the defendants was seized . While executing the search warrant their security system was decommissioned and the hard drive taken
An application was made for disposal of the animals and they were disposed of to the fictional organisation , so who got them, the week of the disposal hearing the RNZSPCA used this case for a massive fundraising campaign using flyers and TV programe to highlight puppy farming
Two of the bitches seized where in whelp and delivered 20 puppies some of them were born in he back of a van while in transit by the SPCA so not all survived
despite the fact that the puppies had not been seized and no charges related to the puppies they were disposed of under section 136 A which cannot apply to them
These were pedigree dogs, why did the inspector need the pedigree papers and why were the dogs disposed of before charges were brought in November 2018
surely if a person has committed the offence of failing to care for an ill animal the animal should have had vet treatment immediately and the charges brought immediately the evidence would be the animal not a search warrant fishing expedition 6 months later .
It is also strange from my perspective ( I am a former police prosecutor ) that we have identical charges for two dogs one was seized the other not , what made one valuable was that it was an imported blood line and a valuable pedigree and the other a pedigree dog of domestic blood line
I hope that you as a former police officer see the concern with this and launch a full investigation into this matter with view of assessing the suitability of the SPCA to retain its approved status , the Ontario SPCA lost its status due to its lack of public accountability, the mere fact that we do not know who is prosecuting strikes at the heart of public accountability
I therefore also seek urgent clarification as to who Plowright was employed by was it a member society or the RNZSPCA
Yours sincerely,
Grace Haden
From: Official Information Act
Thank you for contacting the Official Information Act Inbox at the
Ministry for Primary Industries.
If you have requested information under the Official Information Act 1982
(OIA) your request will be considered and a decision provided in
accordance with the requirements of the OIA.
If you have any questions regarding your request, please email
[1][email address]
Kind regards,
Official Information Act Team
Government Services | Public Affairs
Ministry for Primary Industries | Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen
Street | PO Box 2526 | Wellington | New Zealand
Telephone: 0800 00 83 33 | Email: [2][email address] |
Web: [3]www.mpi.govt.nz
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From: Official Information Act
Tēnā koe Grace
On behalf of Gary Orr, Director Compliance Services, please find the
response to your official information act request attached.
Ngā mihi
Official Information Act Team
Government Services | Public Affairs
Ministry for Primary Industries | Charles Fergusson Building, 34-38 Bowen
Street | PO Box 2526 | Wellington | New Zealand
Telephone: 0800 00 83 33 | Email: [1][email address] |
Web: [2]www.mpi.govt.nz
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1. mailto:[email address]
2. http://www.mpi.govt.nz/
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