1 December 2025
OIAD-1815
Phoebe Robertson
Tēnā koe Phoebe
Thank you for your email of 3 November 2025 to the Ministry for the Environment (the
Ministry):requesting the following under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act):
1. Governance and Executive-Level Reporting
Copies of all reports, briefings, minutes, presentations, or discussion papers provided to
any of the following since 1 January 2023:
• the Chief Executive,
• any Deputy Chief Executive,
• the Executive Leadership Team, and/or
• the Audit & Risk Committee,
that relate to or reference:
• staff wellbeing, stress, morale, or culture,
• bullying, harassment, or psychological harm,
• psychosocial or mental-health risk management,
• health, safety, and wellbeing performance, or
• retention and turnover concerns linked to workplace culture.
Please include any attachments, appendices, or summary dashboards referenced in those
materials.
2. Risk Registers and Organisational Health Reporting
Copies of all risk-register entries, hazard logs, or risk-review summaries maintained or
discussed at the executive or governance level that reference:
• staff wellbeing or psychological safety,
• workplace culture or leadership risk, or
• psychosocial hazards or stress-related risks,
during the same period.
3. Escalations and External Engagement
Copies of any emails, briefings, or memoranda exchanged between:
• the Chief Executive,
• any Deputy Chief Executive, or
• members of the Audit & Risk Committee,
that discuss or reference:
• escalations or concerns about bullying, psychological harm, or wellbeing issues,
• engagement or correspondence with WorkSafe NZ, the Public Service Commission, or
any other external agency about psychosocial or wellbeing matters, or
• any decision-making relating to staff safety, culture, or mental-health risk.
4. Assurance Frameworks and Reviews
Copies of any frameworks, internal audits, self-assessments, or guidance documents that
describe how the Ministry provides governance oversight of psychosocial risk, wellbeing,
or staff safety, including:
• any changes, reviews, or updates made since 1 January 2023, and
• any documentation evidencing how senior leaders monitor or report on organisational
culture or psychological safety.
5. Internal Surveys and Analysis
Copies of any staff-survey results, pulse checks, or analysis shared with the Executive
Leadership Team or Audit & Risk Committee since 1 January 2023 that include findings or
metrics relating to:
• stress, burnout, morale, or psychological safety; or
• staff confidence in raising issues or accessing safe channels for support.
6. Critical Health and Safety Events
Copies of all incident reports, notifications, or summaries received or recorded by the
Ministry since 1 January 2023 that relate to:
• serious harm, attempted self-harm, or suicide involving a current or former employee;
• critical wellbeing or psychological safety incidents; or
• acute mental-health events that required medical, emergency, or external intervention.
Please include:
• any internal incident report forms (including Vault or equivalent system entries),
• notifications or reports made to WorkSafe NZ, the Public Service Commission, or other
agencies, and
• any debriefs, reviews, or follow-up actions taken by leadership, HR, or health and safety
teams.
7. Governance and Reporting
Copies of any briefings, emails, or reports provided to:
• the Chief Executive,
• any Deputy Chief Executive, or
• the Audit & Risk Committee,
that discuss or reference any of the incidents above.
8. Review or Remediation Actions
Copies of any reviews, investigations, or lessons-learned reports undertaken by or for the
Ministry in response to any such incidents since January 2023.
I am writing to notify you that the Ministry is extending the timeframe for its response to your
request under section 15A(1)(a) of the Act, as the request is for a large quantity of official
information or necessitates a search through a large quantity of information and meeting the
original time limit would unreasonably interfere with the operations of the department or the
venture or the Minister of the Crown or the organisation.
We will now respond to your request on, if not before, 27 January 2026, which is an extension of
25 working days.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of my decision to
extend this request, in accordance with section 28(3) of the Act. The relevant details can be
foun
d at: www.ombudsman.parliament.nz. Nāku noa, nā
Lachlan Brown Team Leader, Ministerial Services
Ministry for the Environment | Manatū Mō Te Taiao
