11 June 2025
George Grey
[FYI request #30741 email]
Tēnā koe George
Your request for official information, reference: HNZ00085991
Thank you for your email on 16 April 2025, asking Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora for the
following under the Official Information Act 1982 (the OIA):
I am writing to request information about the recently announced $10 bil ion hospital
infrastructure program........... I am interested in understanding how Health New Zealand
wil ensure that this program is managed transparently, that regional healthcare needs are
fairly addressed, and that private sector involvement does not compromise public care.
Please provide details and supporting documents regarding the following.
What policies and procedures are in place to make sure the tendering and procurement
process is transparent and free from corruption or unethical practices?
How wil tender documents, evaluation criteria, awarded contracts, and performance
reviews be made available to the public? If information is redacted, what is the basis for
this?
What monitoring and enforcement measures (including audits and independent reviews)
are in place to ensure compliance with these policies?
What criteria are used to allocate funds and decide the locations of hospital projects to
ensure all regions receive appropriate attention?
Is there documentation (such as reports or studies) that outlines current regional disparities
in healthcare infrastructure and how these gaps wil be addressed?
Are there specific programs or initiatives aimed at improving access to healthcare in rural or
underserved areas?
What role, if any, wil the private sector (including private equity) play in the program?
Please describe the nature and extent of this involvement.
What measures are in place to avoid conflicts of interest and ensure that private
participation does not affect the quality, accessibility, or affordability of health services?
How does Health New Zealand plan to monitor the performance of any private entities
involved in the program, and what contractual safeguards exist to keep public health
interests a priority?
Response
I answer each of the questions you have posed, in turn below.
What policies and procedures are in place to make sure the tendering and procurement
process is transparent and free from corruption or unethical practices?
The Infrastructure and Investment Group (IIG) within Health NZ is an Authorised Procurement
Centre and therefore enables infrastructure related procurement activity. As an Authorised
Procurement Centre the IIG operates under the overarching Health NZ Procurement Policy, which
can be found her
e: Health NZ Procurement Policy.
As a mandated agency, Health NZ must also fol ow
the Government Procurement Rules which
support sustainable and inclusive procurement through the promotion of good practice for
procurement planning, approaching the supplier community and contracting.
This Supplier Code of Conduct which is included in the Government Procurement Rules outlines
the expectations Government, and by extension Health NZ has of its suppliers. Suppliers must
make their subcontractors aware of this code which includes the following expectations of
Suppliers in respect of ethical behaviour:
• to manage their activities and affairs, and conduct themselves, with integrity in accordance
with applicable laws, regulations and ethical standards
• not engage in any form of corruption
• be transparent about their ethical policies and practices.
Further details of the Supplier Code of Conduct can be foun
d at Supplier code of conduct | New
Zealand Government Procurement
The IIG has a standard suite of tender document templates and standard contracts that incorporate
these requirements to ensure Health NZ can achieve transparent, ethical practices, devoid of any
form of corruption.
How wil tender documents, evaluation criteria, awarded contracts, and performance
reviews be made available to the public? If information is redacted, what is the basis for
this?
As required by the NZ Government Procurement Rules, Health NZ publish and make available
tender (RFx) and related artifacts vi
a the Government Electronic Tender Service (GETS).
Information from tender respondents is redacted where that is necessary to avoid compromising
fair competition between suppliers. More information on how Government requires the protection of
suppliers’ information can be found at
Protection of supplier information | New Zealand
Government Procurement. The names of the successful participant(s) who are awarded contracts
wil be published on GETS along with the date of award.
Individual tenders awarded to panel suppliers are not published on GETS as this is a secondary
procurement process and therefore publication is not required under the Government Procurement
Rules.
Additional information concerning the tender process can be found at the following link on our
websi
te: https://www.tewhatuora.govt.nz/corporate-information/procurement
What monitoring and enforcement measures (including audits and independent reviews)
are in place to ensure compliance with these policies?
As part of Health NZ, the IIG is subject to internal audit. For project related procurement the IIG
has arrangements in place for external independent Probity Audit Services and a separate
arrangement for external independent Probity Advisory Services which are used in procurements
as deemed necessary.
What criteria are used to allocate funds and decide the locations of hospital projects to
ensure all regions receive appropriate attention?
The prioritisation of proposed investments is undertaken based on assessing both clinical service
drivers outlined by population and health need assessment across regions and asset risk and
condition that could undermine clinical service if not addressed.
This approach is supported by the National Asset Management Strategy and provides Health New
Zealand with a standard and consistent approach to how we manage public health buildings and
infrastructure across the motu.
This is the first such strategy for Health NZ and it sets out a pathway to increased asset
management maturity for Health NZ building, plant and infrastructure assets. This is to ensure we
are managing our assets suitable to the criticality of the services that we provide - public health
facilities for all New Zealanders. You can find the strategy her
e: Health-New-Zealand-National-
Asset-Management-Strategy-2025.pdf
Is there documentation (such as reports or studies) that outlines current regional disparities
in healthcare infrastructure and how these gaps wil be addressed?
Are there specific programs or initiatives aimed at improving access to healthcare in rural or
underserved areas?
Specific programs or initiatives aimed at improving access to healthcare in rural or underserved
areas can be found in the Rural Health Strategy. This document is published online and can be
found at https://www.health.govt.nz/system/files/2023-07/rural-health-strategy-oct23-v2.pdf.
Moving forward our approach to managing the physical health estate wil be guided by the Health
Infrastructure Plan. The plan details the pipeline of investments in physical infrastructure over the
next 10 years and wil provide Health NZ with a consistent approach to how and when we invest in
public health infrastructure across the country based on clinical service planning and equitable
healthcare access. The plan is published online and can be found her
e: Health-Infrastructure-Plan-
April-2025.docx
What role, if any, wil the private sector (including private equity) play in the program?
Please describe the nature and extent of this involvement.
The Government is open to public private partnerships to help deliver the health infrastructure New
Zealanders need and deserve. Funding and financing proposals where other parties build the
infrastructure that is then used to deliver contracted public health services is an example.
Health NZ is expecting to approach the private sector to explore possible financing, development
and operating arrangements to ensure effective market provided solutions.
What measures are in place to avoid conflicts of interest and ensure that private
participation does not affect the quality, accessibility, or affordability of health services?
Conflicts of interest are managed in line with Health NZ’s Conflict of Interest policy, failure to
comply with this policy could result in disciplinary action being taken. Al employees and
contractors working for Health NZ are required to declare any conflict of interest on
commencement of their employment or appointment. All personnel involved in procurement activity
must also complete a form specifically in relation to the procurement being undertaken to declare
whether a conflict of interest exists.
Where a conflict of interest is identified, the ongoing involvement of the relevant personnel wil be
subject to review and approval of a satisfactory management plan which sets out how the conflict
wil be managed, reviewed and monitored. The management plan if approved, is signed by both
Health NZ and the employee/contractor concerned.
How does Health New Zealand plan to monitor the performance of any private entities
involved in the program, and what contractual safeguards exist.
The performance and contract management of construction consultants and construction
contractors is undertaken by the project team in accordance with the contractual obligations
outlined in the contract and supporting project artifacts.
If your question refers to monitoring the performance of private funders, Health NZ has not yet
approached the private sector to work through the process and put in appropriate safeguards for
this in practice. As plans do not currently exist and the information is not held elsewhere, I am
respectfully declining this request under section 18(e) of the Act.
How to get in touch
If you have any questions, you can contact us a
t [email address].
If you are not happy with this response, you have the right to make a complaint to the
Ombudsman. Information about how to do this is available at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
by phoning 0800 802 602.
As this information may be of interest to other members of the public, Health NZ may proactively
release a copy of this response on our website. Al requester data, including your name and
contact details, wil be removed prior to release.
Nāku iti noa, nā
Danielle Coe
Manager (OIAs) – Government Services
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora
TeWhatuOra.govt.nz
Health NZ, PO Box 793,
Wellington 6140, New Zealand
