IN CONFIDENCE
NOT GOVERNMENT POLICY
CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL REINSTATEMENT REVIEW PANEL
TERMS OF REFERENCE
Background
1. The Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Review Panel (the Panel) was established under
section 13 of the Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Act 2017 (the Act).
2. Parliament passed the Act to facilitate the reinstatement of the Christ Church Cathedral (the
Cathedral). The proposed reinstatement is the culmination of a long period of litigation,
facilitation, negotiation, and investigation, and is intrinsically linked to two key reports
facilitated by the Government, including the Cathedral Working Group Recommendation
Report (CWG Report) (section 3)1.
3. The purpose of the Act is to facilitate reinstatement of the Cathedral, recognising its
contribution to cultural, social, and economic wellbeing in Christchurch, its importance to
Christchurch’s regeneration, and its heritage value. The purpose of the Act includes, in
particular, any one or more of the following:
a) To facilitate reinstatement in an expedited manner compared with processes and
requirements outside the Act
b) To provide a cost-effective process for reinstatement compared with processes outside
the Act
c) To achieve earlier or greater certainty for the owner of the Cathedral and the
Christchurch community generally as to the reinstatement of the Cathedral than would
be likely under processes and requirements outside the Act (section 4).
Orders in Council
4. The Act achieves its purpose by providing for an Order in Council mechanism which can
grant exemptions from, modify or extend specified enactments in Schedule 2 of the Act.
Other enactments can also be added to Schedule 2. This is to enable expedited, cost-
effective reinstatement processes, and to achieve earlier or greater certainty for Church
Property Trustees (CPT) and the Christchurch community generally.
Roles and Responsibilities
5. The Panel is a statutory body and its functions are set out in section 15 of the Act. They are
to:
a) review all draft Orders in Council that may be required for the purpose of the Act; and
b) provide advice on request to the Minister in relation to Orders in Council that may be
required for the purpose of the Act.
6. The Panel is an important check and balance on the significant powers in the Act.
1Miriam Dean CNZM QC report
: http://cathedralconversations.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Cathedral-
Miriam-Dean-Report-2015-11.pdf and Cathedral Working Group Report and appendixes
https://dpmc.govt.nz/publications/cathedral-working-group-recommendation-report-released-26-may-2017.
1
IN CONFIDENCE
NOT GOVERNMENT POLICY
7. The Panel has been appointed to provide expert, technical advice. The Panel does not have
investigatory powers nor is it empowered to hear from interested parties. It does not have a
representative function and is not a forum for general engagement or community
participation.
Role of the Convener
8. In addition, if you are appointed as the Convenor you will lead the Panel to run an effective
and rigorous review process. The Convener has responsibility for and oversight of the Panel’s
operations.
9. The Convener will:
a) Agree a forward work programme with DPMC (or to the relevant inheriting agency) and
oversee the progression of the work in conjunction with the Secretariat;
b) Set meeting agendas, with the assistance of the Secretariat, and approve meeting
minutes;
c) Determine, with assistance from the Secretariat, what action is appropriate if a member
has a potential conflict of interest;
d) Represent the Panel in any meetings with the Minister, DPMC (or to the relevant
inheriting agency) or other stakeholders, as required;
e) Seek written approval from DPMC (or from the relevant inheriting agency) before
incurring any significant expenditure or financial commitment on behalf of the Panel
(excluding incidentals such as travel, accommodation and reasonable expenses); and
f)
If the Convener is absent from a meeting, the Convener may designate an Acting
Convener for that meeting. If the Convener does not designate an Acting Convener, then
the Minister may designate any other member of the Panel to act in the Convener’s
place (section 15(5)).
Roles of the Panel Members, including the Convener
10. All Panel members, including the Convener, have the following roles and responsibilities:
a) Make every effort to attend each meeting and report anticipated absences to the
Secretariat;
b) Prepare adequately prior to each meeting and participate actively in meetings,
contributing to actions when agreed;
c) Bring matters of significance to the attention of the Panel and use professional
perspectives to undertake analysis or prepare advice as required;
d) Maintain a broad knowledge of the issues and interests that relate to the operations of
the Panel, not regarding themselves as representatives or advocates for particular
sectors or interests;
e) Comply with the Standards of Conduct in Appendix 1; and,
f)
Record any actual or perceived conflict in writing and provide it to the Convenor at the
first opportunity, and at any time during the term if a new conflict arises. In the event of
a conflict of interest being identified the Convenor will provide guidance on the
appropriate response.
2
IN CONFIDENCE
NOT GOVERNMENT POLICY
Requirements for Panel’s review and recommendations
11. The Panel’s recommendations must meet the requirements of section 15 of the Act.
12. Within 15 working days after the date on which a draft Order in Council is received by the
Review Panel the Convenor must give the Minister a report that includes the Panel’s
recommendations and the reasons for making those recommendations, which will be
publicly available.
13. The Panel’s recommendations may also address:
a) Whether the draft Order in Council is sufficiently certain and clear, and if they are not,
options to improve;
b) The identification of any unintended or unforeseen but likely outcomes of the draft
Order in Council, and ways to address these; and
c) Any other matters the Panel considers relevant to the scope of its review of the draft
Order in Council.
14. The Minister must have regard to the Panel’s recommendations before making a final
decision on whether to recommend the making of an Order in Council to the Governor-
General.
15. The Panel’s review may be conducted in any manner that the convener thinks appropriate,
including by telephone or video conference (section 15(3)). The conduct of the review
should comply with any applicable Government direction or guideline relating to COVID-19
in force at the time the review is conducted.
16. In reviewing a draft Order in Council, the Panel is expected to not advocate for any particular
values or represent any interest group but to be fair and open-minded in its assessment.
17. Any requests for information required by the Panel in order to discharge its functions and
duties should be directed to the Greater Christchurch Group within the Department of the
Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) or to the relevant inheriting agency.
18. The Panel’s report will be sent by the Secretariat to the Minister’s office as a hard copy
signed by the Convener on behalf of the Panel. Electronic copies of the Panel’s report will
also be sent to the Associate Minister’s Office and copying in the Minister for Greater
Christchurch Regeneration.
Term of the Panel
19. The Panel commenced its role on 13 March 2020, as per the date of the letters of
appointment.
3
IN CONFIDENCE
NOT GOVERNMENT POLICY
Length of term:
Member
Length of term
Dates
Hon Nicholas Davidson (Convenor)
4 years
From 13 March 2020 to 1
March 2024
Kyle Davis
4 years
From 13 March 2020 to 1
March 2024
Amanda Dewar
4 years
From 13 March 2020 to 1
March 2024
David Ayers
3 years
From 13 March 2020 to 1
March 2023
Sina Cotter Tait
3 years
From 13 March 2020 to 1
March 2023
Sarah Dawson
3 years
From 13 March 2020 to 1
March 2023
Administrative support to the Panel
20. The Panel will be supported by a Secretariat based in Christchurch.
21. The Secretariat will:
a) Support the Convener and prepare meeting agendas;
b) Record meeting minutes and action points from Panel meetings;
c) Circulate meeting packs (agenda, minutes and any papers required);
d) Create or commission papers for Panel meetings as required;
e) Procure research on behalf of the Panel if required;
f)
Book travel, accommodation, catering and venues as required; and
g) Administer expenditure requests, member remuneration and reimbursement as
required.
22. The Secretariat will provide the Panel members with:
a) Copies of draft Order(s) in Council;
b) A copy of the draft reasons for the Minister’s recommendation to the Governor-General
under section 9(1), including why the draft Order in Council is appropriate;
c) A summary of any written comments received by the Minister out of the engagement
process required under section 10. This might include comments from iwi, local
authorities and other submitters, or the public generally; and
d) Other relevant documentation to assist with the development of the Panel’s
recommendations.
Membership
23. The Panel is comprised of up to six members appointed by the Minister, including the
Convener, who have appropriate knowledge, skills, and experience to assist the Panel to
perform its functions.
24. The Convener must be a former or retired Judge of the High Court (section 13).
4
IN CONFIDENCE
NOT GOVERNMENT POLICY
25. All members are appointed on the terms and conditions specified in their letter of
appointment and these Terms of Reference.
26. An appointed member vacates office if he or she:
a) Is removed by written notice given by the Minister or
b) Resigns by written notice given to the Minister.
27. The following table provides indicative dates and key milestones for the first proposed Order
in Council:
Date
Milestone
Mid-May 2020
Panel induction.
29 May – 19 June 2020
Public consultation.
29 June 2020
Panel supplied with draft order, draft reasons
and other collateral.
29 June – 20 July 2020
Panel commences work.
20 July 2020
Panel delivers recommendations to the
Minister.
5
IN CONFIDENCE
NOT GOVERNMENT POLICY
Appendix 1: Standards of Conduct
1. All members are expected to adhere to the following standards of conduct.
Conflicts of interest
2. A conflict of interest will occur when a member’s private interests interferes, or appears to
interfere, with an issue that faces the Panel. A conflict of interest will also occur when there
is a possibility that a benefit may apply to a sector, industry or organisation that they
represent. A conflict of interest may be real or perceived. Further guidance can be found in
Managing Conflicts of Interest: Guidance for public entities.
3. Any situation that involves or may be expected to involve a conflict or perceived conflict of
interest must be declared immediately to the Convener and recorded in writing, as soon as
the conflict arises.
4. The Convenor will be responsible for the management of declared conflicts of interest, and
all declared conflicts of interest must be reported to DPMC, or to the relevant inheriting
agency.
Confidentiality and media
5. In order for the Panel to operate effectively, members must maintain the confidence of the
Panel, including maintaining confidentiality of matters discussed at meetings, and any
information or documents provided to the Panel.
6. Any approaches by media to Panel members much be referred to the Convener who then
must also alert DPMC, or the relevant inheriting agency, and the Minister about the request.
Privacy Act 1993
7. Members must at all times comply with the requirements of the Privacy Act 1993 and keep
information about identifiable individuals confidential.
Official Information Act 1982
8. All information held by the Minister and DPMC or the inheriting agency (including
information provided by the Panel) is official information under the Official Information Act
1982 and, subject to the requirements of that Act, may be released to the public.
9. If the Minister or DPMC or the inheriting agency is considering releasing information relating
to the Panel under the Official Information Act 1982, DPMC or the inheriting agency will
inform the Convenor before it is released.
Respect for others
10. Members will treat each other and the opinions of others with respect at all times. Members
will not take unfair advantage of anyone through manipulation, concealment, abuse of
privileged information, misrepresentation of material facts or any other unfair dealing
practices.
Advocacy
11. Members must avoid actively promoting a standpoint or cause of their industry and will
participate in meetings with the aim of reaching an outcome that is acceptable to all
participants.
6
