25/02/2021
Ref: OIA 2021-1224
Mr Brailsford
[FYI request #14280 email]
Dear Mr Brailsford
Thank you for your email of 22 December 2020 to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment
requesting, under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act), the following information:
“I request all information held in respect of climate change research and mitigation funding:
including but not limited to:
A) comparative tables of funding allocations per financial year for the last 20 years
B) employment funding allocations for the last 5 years in climate change research and policy,
C) strategy documents outlining climate change research areas of focus (current and for the next 5
years).”
Request for information related to funding allocations
Climate change and mitigating and adapting to its effects encompasses complex and substantial areas of
research. My team at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has attempted to
work with you to scope this request in a more focused way that could enable us to provide a useful
response to you. As we have not heard from you and because your request is currently framed too
broadly for us to be able to answer, we need to decline your request under section 18(f) of the Official
Information Act.
However, we can provide a broad overview of government investment in these research areas. MBIE
invests an estimated $100M annually in research directly related to climate change, such as emissions-
mitigation research, physical climate change research, and climate change-adaptation research. This
amount will vary depending on more specific definitions and search parameters including the use of
specific Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC) Codes. Key funding
mechanisms for this research include the Strategic Science Investment Fund, the Endeavour Fund, and
the National Science Challenges.
We remain happy to focus the scope of this request and provide further information should you wish to
discuss this with us.
Request for information relating to employment funding allocations
I am refusing this request under section 18(g)(ii) of the Official Information Act as this information is not
held by MBIE. MBIE does not hold employment information for staff conducting climate change research
as this funding is devolved to the institutions conducting the research.
Request for information relating to strategic documents
Strategy documents for these areas of research including investment plans for individual MBIE funds can
be found on the MBIE website her
e https://www.mbie.govt.nz/science-and-technology/science-and-
innovation/funding-information-and-opportunities/investment-funds/, and research strategies for the
MBIE1376631
natural resource sectors can be found on the Ministry for the Enivronment and Ministry for Primary
Industries websites
(https://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/about-us/conservation-and-environment-
science-roadmap an
d https://www.mpi.govt.nz/dmsdocument/18383-Primary-Sector-Science-Roadmap-
Te-Ao-Turoa-Strengthening-New-Zealands-bioeconomy-for-future-generations). You may also be
interested in reading the strategy documents of the individual Crown Research Institutes. As this
information is publicly available, I will not be providing copies of these documents with this request under
section 18(d) of the Official Information Act.
I hope you will find this information helpful. As I have mentioned above, my team are happy to discuss
this request further should you wish to refine and focus the scope of information being sought.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision. Information
about how to make a complaint is availab
le at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone 0800 802
602.
Yours sincerely
Poppy Haynes
Manager, Science Policy
Science, Innovation and International