Reference: 20220050
10 March 2022
Athina Andonatou
[FYI request #18437 email]
Dear Athina
Thank you for your Official Information Act request, transferred from Toitū te Whenua Land
Information New Zealand to the Treasury on 10 February 2022. Your request was:
What rules which help foreign investors purchase farmland in New Zealand for
forestry conversions are under review? And why? Please provide al
documentation related to discussions around this matter, specifically why the
review? Who is authorising the review? And are there possible conflicts of interest
involved by those authorising the review?
On 1 March 2022, a Treasury staff member contacted you seeking to discuss the scope of your
request, as your request as currently framed wil be very difficult to provide a complete response
to without undertaking substantial col ation and research. In this email, the Treasury provided
you details on a recent Government announcement on the change in direction for the Overseas
Investment Act 2005 Forestry Review. Meeting your request, as currently scoped, could impact
the Treasury’s ability to complete its other operations.
As the Treasury has not received a response from you, your request is refused under section
18(f) of the Official Information Act:
•
the information requested cannot be made available without substantial col ation or
research.
If you would like to contact the Treasury to make a refined Official Information Act request, then
please contact us at
[email address]. This reply addresses the information you requested. You have the right to ask the Ombudsman
to investigate and review my decision.
Yours sincerely
Conor McBride
Manager, International
1 The Terrace
PO Box 3724
Wellington 6140
New Zealand
tel. +64-4-472-2733
https://treasury.govt.nz