9(2)(a)
Item 1
Released under the Official Information Act
Item 2(a)
Departmental
Briefing
GS ref:
18–B–0451
DOCCM:
5476249
To:
Minister of Conservation
Date: 10 May 2018
Subject:
Conservation Board Appointment Recommendations
Action
1. Select provisional appointees to conservation boards
sought:
2. Advise the Department of your provisional appointees to enable it to
prepare a paper for Cabinet Appointments and Honours Committee
Time Frame:
25 May 2018
To allow completion of appointments process by 30 June 2018, before
terms of departing board members expire.
Security
In Confidence
Department’s
High
Classification:
Priority:
Risk
Delays to appointments
Level of Risk:
Low
Assessment:
Contacts:
Name:
Position:
Phone: Work
After Hours
1. Dr Rick McGovern- Snr Statutory Bodies 9(2)(a)
Wilson
Manager
2. Lisa McLennan
Statutory
Bodies 9(2)(a)
Advisor
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Minister’s feedback on quality:
1
2
3
4
5
1 = Not 2 = Fel short 3
=
Met 4 = Met and sometimes 5=
Exceeded
Satisfactory of expectations Expectations exceeded expectations Expectations
1
Executive summary
1. This report presents the Department’s recommendations for appointments to
conservation boards with the effect from 1 July 2018. The New Zealand Conservation
Authority (the Authority) has provided its recommendations to you in a letter dated 8 May
2018 and these are included in this submission for completeness.
2. This is a change in practice from previous years, where the two sets of
recommendations would be brought together into one set, but we are giving effect to
your request to see the separate recommendations.
3. Appointments are made in accordance with section 6P of the Conservation Act 1987,
and take account of the skil s, location and other characteristics of the other members on
the board to which each individual has sought appointment.
4. Additionally, effort has been made to ensure continuity arising from the 2017
appointment round, by identifying those most likely to have the skil s, experience and
strategic focus necessary for appropriate and insightful participation in the review of
conservation management strategies over the next three years.
5. The process required by the Conservation Act is set out in this submission.
It is recommended that you –
Decision
(a) Consider the Department’s and the Authority’s recommendations
Yes / No
for appointments to conservation boards.
(b) Meet with officials to go through the schedule of nominations
Yes / No
(attached) and recommendations.
(c) Select your provisional appointees to the 15 conservation boards,
subject to completion of necessary consultations before confirming
Yes / No
their appointment. These wil take effect from 1 July 2018.
(d) Note that the Department wil provide a letter for your consultation
with the Minister for Māori Development, once you have approved
Yes / No
a final list
(e) Note that the Department wil provide the papers for lodging with
Appointments and Honours Committee, once you have approved
Yes / No
a final list
…………………………………………
………………..…………. …… / …... / ……
Mervyn English
Hon Eugenie Sage
Deputy Director-General, Strategy and People Minister of Conservation
Released under the Official Information Act
for Director-General
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Purpose
1.
This paper provides you with the recommendations from the Department and the New
Zealand Conservation Authority (the Authority) for appointments to conservation
boards, and provides a comparison between the recommendations, to assist you with
selecting your provisional appointees.
Background
2.
Conservation board members are appointed fol owing a public process set out in
section 6P of the Conservation Act. Special provisions exist under section 6P (4A)-
(7C) that give rights to specific iwi to nominate members to conservation boards.
3.
You are required to consult with the Authority before appointing members to
conservation boards (other than the nominees of iwi specified in statute) (s6P(1)
refers).
4.
Before making any appointments representing the interests of tangata whenua of an
area, you are required to consult with the Minister for Māori Development.
5.
Conservation boards provide a platform for discussions by all sectors of a community
and to have input into the management of public conservation resources. To offset
pressure through Treaty settlement processes for parallel boards made up solely of
Māori, it is important that conservation boards include sufficient members who are
tangata whenua of the area so that iwi have confidence that their interests and
perspectives wil be heard and fully considered.
Comment
Number of public vacancies
6.
There are 49 public vacancies to be fil ed in 2018 (out of a total public membership of
145), with five of these vacancies arising from resignations. This level of replacement
wil occur on an annual basis.
7.
The Te Hiku o Te Ika Conservation Board only received three nominations for the four
vacancies. The Department wil address the issue of board recruitment in this region in
the coming year.
The Department’s recommendations
8.
The initial reports prepared by each Operations Director for their respective boards,
explaining how they determined their recommendations, are provided as Attachment
A.
Authority recommendations
9.
The Authority’s recommendations are provided as Attachment B.
Recommendations in common to be approved
10. A comparison of the Department’s and the Authority’s recommendations for
appointments to conservation boards are identified in Attachment C.
11. The Department recommends that the preferred appointees that have been identified
by both the Department and the Authority be appointed without further consideration,
other than for necessary consultations.
Released under the Official Information Act
First term members seeking reappointment
12. In the past it has been normal practice for members who have reapplied, but have only
served one term (three years or less), to be reappointed for a second term unless
strong reasons exist not to make the reappointment. This is a relevant consideration
for this round, as some members were only appointed to one or two-year terms in due
to the filing of resigned positions.
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13. Where the Department or the Authority have not recommended a current board
member who has served less than two terms (six years), this is identified in the
comments column of Appendix C.
Reappointments of persons who have already served two terms
14. Cabinet and State Services Commission guidelines advise that, if a person is to be
appointed for more than two-terms (6 years), there has to be a sound reason for doing
so. Sound reasons may include their critical skil s, experience, knowledge, other
capability or capacity necessary for the effectiveness of the board in short term.
15. The following person has been recommended for a further term due to exceptional
circumstances of the need for leadership of a quite disjointed board, and national park
management planning work continuity:
West Coast Tai Poutini Conservation Board
• 9(2)(a)
(by DOC and the Authority)
16. In 2014, following the Review, all positions across all the conservation boards fell due
for appointment. In order to enable a rolling replacement of members every year, in
2014 people were appointed for one, two or three year periods.
17. As a result, there are a number of members who have served four years, having first
been appointed for a single year, then re-appointed for a full three-year4 term, who are
being recommended for another three-year term (which wil be their last).
Terms of appointment
18. Section 6R(4B) requires that a member appointed to replace a member who has
resigned, shal complete the term of that member first.
19. Appointments to conservation boards can be for a term of up to 3 years. It is
recommended that in al cases members be appointed for 3 years, except those
replacing resignations who wil be fil ing the remaining term.
Nominations by Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu
20. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu has a statutory right to nominate a specific number of
persons for appointment to the conservation boards whose areas fall within its takiwa.
Its recommendations for appointment in 2018 have been received and wil be included
in the appointments process at the APH stage. The five nominees are for each of the
South Island conservation boards
Nominations by other statutory organisations
21. Four members of the Te Hiku o Te Ika Conservation Board are appointed on the
recommendation by the trustees of Ngāti Kuri, the Te Rūnanga Nui o Te Aupouri Trust,
Te Rūnanga o NgāiTakoto, and Te Rūnanga o Te Rarawa (one member each).
22. The four statutory appointments have now served their four-year terms. The trustees of
Ngāti Kuri, the Te Rūnanga Nui o Te Aupouri Trust, Te Rūnanga o NgāiTakoto, and Te
Rūnanga o Te Rarawa wil advise a replacement in time for the APH stage of the
appointments process.
Cost Implications
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23. Conservation Board members fees and expenses are paid from Vote Conservation.
The fees are set at $180 per day for members and $240 per day for chairpersons.
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Consultation
24. The public vacancies for the 2018 nominations process were original y advertised on
15 December 2017 and were open for application until 2018. At your request we re-
advertised via social media channels for the period 16 March until 14 April
25. The Ministry for Women and Te Puni Kokiri were informed of the conservation board
vacancies, and advertised the positions via their networks.
26. The Ministry for Women shared a number of the Departments advertising posts
through Facebook and LinkedIn, producing a number of interactions via their networks.
They also nominated five people directly.
27. The Minister for Māori Development is consulted by you for the appointments that
include the interests of the tangata whenua of a board’s area.
28. A number of nominations endorsed by Members of Parliament were received. A list of
these nominations is provided as Attachment D, identifying those whose appointment
is recommended by the Department or the Authority.
29. Your office wil organise any further consultation required with Caucus on your
provisional appointees.
Section 4 Conservation Act
30. The interests of the local community including the tangata whenua of the area are
taken into account when making appointments to conservation boards.
31. Where such appointments are made, the Minister shal consult with the Minister for
Māori Development about those interests.
32. Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kuri, the Te Rūnanga Nui o Te Aupouri Trust, Te
Rūnanga o NgāiTakoto, and Te Rūnanga o Te Rarawa have nominees whose
appointments expire in 2018, and names of their nominees wil be forthcoming.
Legislation
33. Conservation Act 1987, section 6P.
Attachments • Attachment A – Departmental recommendations for each conservation board.
• Attachment B – recommendations of the Authority for appointments
• Attachment C – comparison of recommendations from the Authority and the Department
• Attachment D – nominations endorsed by Members of Parliament
• Attachment E – full schedule of nominations received
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ENDS
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Item 2(b)
COMBINED LIST OF ALL DEPARTMENT RECOMMENDATIONS FOR
CONSERVATION BOARD APPOINTMENTS FOR 2018
2018 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR APPOINTMENT TO THE AUCKLAND
CONSERVATION BOARD
Introduction
The terms of three members filling public places on the present Auckland Conservation
Board expire during 2018. The retiring members are:
Out of Scope
Out of Scope
Out of Scope
Auckland Region is required to recommend three replacement Board members, with three
alternatives.
All the totals and figures used in this memo refer to a twelve-member Board.
Two retiring members have submitted nominations for a further term.
Work on the Tāmaki Makaurau Motu Plan (the Motu Plan) is expected during this term. This
is a conservation management plan for three inner Hauraki Gulf islands required under a
collective Treaty settlement. Other work expected includes engagement in issues such as
kauri dieback disease, managing visitor growth and destinations, and implementation of the
marine protection provisions of the Hauraki Gulf marine spatial plan (Sea Change).
Effects of Loss of Members
The overall effects on the Board from the loss of the three members above are as follows:
• The retirement of the three members has minimal effect on the representation from
west and central Auckland, as there are still Board members residing in each area.
However, there is still only one Board member based in the Rodney district to cover the
large area north of Auckland, and one member representing one of the Gulf islands
(who lives in Whangarei for most of the time).
• The retirement of the three members will leave the Board with a gender balance of six
men to three women.
• The retirement of these three members will result in some loss of representation from
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tourism, heritage, resource management, Pasifika and science interests. The remaining
Board members still provide some coverage of these areas except for Pasifika interests.
DOC-5478491 – cb 2018 summary of all Dept recs
• The age spread is skewed towards an older age bracket (seven of the remaining nine
members are aged 50 or above), with the members retiring being in the younger to
middle age bracket.
• The Board's Communications sub-committee will lose two members including the sub-
committee Chair, from a work area which has been an increasing priority for the Board.
• The Board's Concessions sub-committee will also lose two members including the sub-
committee Chair, from a work area which has been an ongoing priority for the Board.
Criteria for Selection
The selection of proposed Board members was made with the following factors considered:
• Continuity of experience and knowledge, especially in the tourism and communications
areas.
• Future work of the Board. The Board will have a considerable workload and will need to
function well at a strategic level. Work coming up for the Board in the next two or three
years includes:
o Development of the Motu Plan;
o Monitoring implementation of the Hauturu-o-Toi Nature Reserve Management Plan,
and the Auckland Conservation Management Strategy (CMS);
o Strategic input into national and regional DOC policies and planning / strategy
documents;
o Managing the effects of increasing visitor numbers to icon sites around the Gulf, and
managing other destinations to spread visitor flow;
o Managing the effects of kauri dieback;
o Advice on implementation of relevant aspects of the Sea Change report, especially
around marine protection;
o Strategic input to support DOC’s work in a post-Treaty settlement environment;
o Connecting with “new New Zealanders” i.e. migrant communities.
• The nature of Auckland Region. The following features were taken into account:
o Size and geographical spread of the area covered. The Auckland Region is relatively
small, but it includes the Hauraki Gulf islands which adds to the complexity of the
Region’s work.
o Area of conservation land involved. Most conservation land in the Region is located
on Hauraki Gulf islands, with a small number of areas of any size on the mainland.
Most mainland sites are small, but increasingly affected by development of
surrounding land.
o Significance of conservation land:
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• representativeness of intact ecosystems – the Region has many islands that
are nationally important for northern coastal forest and island ecosystems.
DOC-5478491 – cb 2018 summary of all Dept recs
• many islands have active community restoration projects, such as Motutapu,
Motuora and Motuihe, with numerous translocations to and from islands and
mainland sanctuaries.
• The Region includes much of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park, and the Aotea
Conservation Park.
o Representation of population. The Region contains the large urban centre of
Auckland City, which continues to experience rapid population growth. Auckland
has a super-diverse population, with a multitude of ethnicities represented among
its “new New Zealanders”.
• the current mix of skills among remaining Board members, and what skills and
knowledge are required given the Board's workload and priorities over the next few
years. The ability to function at a strategic level, act professionally, and work well with
others was also considered.
Nominations
Thirty three nominations were received for the three general places available on the
Auckland Conservation Board. The geographic and gender spread of the nominations is as
follows:
Gender spread = 33 (22 women, 10 men)
Urban/suburban = 25 (17 women*, 8 men)
North Auckland (Rodney) = 1 (1 man)
South Auckland (peri-urban) = 2 (1 woman, 1 man)
West Auckland = 2 (2 women)
Gulf islands = 3 (3 women**)
Out of Scope
Out of Scope
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Other Matters Taken Into Account
The Conservation Board Review Report (2013) recommended that Conservation Boards be
more representative of the communities they serve, with a greater focus on recreation. This
has been considered within this report.
DOC-5478491 – cb 2018 summary of all Dept recs
Gender
Adding the three recommended new members to the remaining Board members would
result in a mix of five women and seven men.
Geographic Spread
Geographic spread is considered important. An area of concern is representation from the
north Auckland (Rodney) area, and the Hauraki Gulf islands. However, the desirability of
balancing the geographic distribution of the Board is outweighed this year by a need to
ensure the Board better represents other aspects of the Region’s population.
CMS and strategic planning
CMS revision is not an important factor for the Auckland Board, but it was considered
important to appoint people who are able to function well at a strategic level. The
development of the Motu Plan, plus other upcoming issues such as the implementation of
Sea Change, will require strategic skills.
Age Spread
The ages of the thirty-three nominees ranged from 21 through to 66, with a median age of
35. The appointment of the three recommended members will help to re-balance the Board
towards a greater age spread that is more representative of the Auckland community,
although the median age will still be 55.
Time Commitment
The three members recommended have been nominated on the understanding of the time
commitment involved. They may not be fully aware of the additional time involved in
projects such as the Motu Plan, but much of that work is likely to be delegated to a sub-
committee.
Endorsements
One nominee was endorsed by Deborah Russell, MP for New Lynn. We have not
recommended this nominee for appointment as the skills she would bring are already
represented on the Board. A further factor was the need to ensure better representation of
the Auckland community among Board members, meaning that other factors were more
important.
One nominee was endorsed by Auckland Council through his ward councillor. We have
recommended this nominee for appointment to the Board.
Proposed New Board Members
The Auckland Region has recommended that the following three people be appointed to the
Board (in no order of preference):
Out of ScopeReleased under the Official Information Act
DOC-5478491 – cb 2018 summary of all Dept recs
Out of Scope
Out of Scope
Fale (Andrew) Lesa
Fale (28) is currently a youth advisor to UNESCO. Despite his youth he has gained significant
experience on a variety of governance and advisory bodies including a term on the Pacific
Island Advisory Panel to Manukau City Council, a consumer representative on the Counties –
Manukau District Health Board, and the Board of Trustees for the Manukau Urban Māori
Authority. He has several current or recent Ministerial appointments to various bodies,
mainly in the health and youth sectors. His tertiary qualification is in environmental
management and he has undertaken some environmental project work in the south
Auckland area. He has iwi affiliations to Ngāti Whatua. He would bring a youth and Pacifica
perspective to the Board, both attributes that are not currently represented, as well as
knowledge of conservation issues in South Auckland. He was nominated by Efeso Collins,
councillor on the Auckland Council.
Reserve Members
The Auckland Region recommends the following three people as reserves (in no order of
preference):
Out of Scope
Out of Scope
Released under the Official Information Act
DOC-5478491 – cb 2018 summary of all Dept recs
Out of Scope
Out of Scope
Out of Scope
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Current board members not being reappointed (who have not served 2 terms)
Out of Scope
DOC-5478491 – cb 2018 summary of all Dept recs
Out of Scope
Summary
The Auckland Conservation Board is facing a large amount of work in the next few years, as
it deals with the development of the Motu Plan and provides input into significant issues
such as kauri dieback, biosecurity, visitor growth and destination management, and
implementation of the Hauraki Gulf marine spatial plan (Sea Change).
The Region recognises that the Board requires people who can operate at a strategic
advisory level, have the necessary skills to research and analyse issues, can function across a
wide variety of subject areas, and are able to undertake their functions in a professional
manner. This Region believes that the three people recommended will add to and
complement the necessary skills and experience required on the Board, as well as better
represent the diversity of the Auckland community.
The Auckland Region includes the large Auckland urban area, smaller settlements and rural
communities to the north, west and south, and several populated islands in the Hauraki
Gulf. The Board as recommended above would provide as reasonable geographical balance
as is possible, bearing in mind the skill base requirements and the nominations received. It
will also give a broader community base better representing the various demographics of
the Auckland population.
The Board, as recommended, contains members with multiple interests so that science,
tourism, recreation, ecological and environmental issues, historical heritage, tangata
whenua and local community interests are strongly represented. Links with the Pasifika and
business communities are also bolstered.
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DOC-5478491 – cb 2018 summary of all Dept recs
Item 2(c)
CONSERVATION BOARD NOMINATIONS 2018
Comparison of recommendations by the NZCA and Department of Conservation (DOC)
Preferred appointees in common are highlighted.
Number of years served on a conservation board shown in brackets where applicable
Names are in alphabetical order
Key:
Yellow highlight = preferred appointee in common
Green highlight = preferred/alternate in common
Blue highlight = alternate appointee in common
Conservation
No. of
Membership NZCA preferred
DOC preferred
Comment
Board
public
of board
appointees
appointees
vacancies
Auckland
3
12
9(2)(a)
9(2)(a)
It is recommended that 9(2)(a)
(3) is
not re-appointed as the preferred appointees
Fale (Andrew) Lesa
give a better balance to the Board.
9(2)(a)
Alternates
There are a number of skilled younger
9(2)(a)
candidates being recommended here.
DOC-5428975
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Item 3
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Item 4(a)
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Item 4(b)
9(2)(a)
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Document Outline
