26 February 2026
Xander McLeod
[FYI request #33640 email]
Ref: PMO OIA 694-2025-26
Dear Xander,
Official Information Act request: Communications with and any other information
about Peter Mandelson
Thank you for your Official Information Act 1982 (the Act) request, received on 6 February
2026. You requested:
1. “Al correspondence between the New Zealand Government and UK Minister Peter
Mandelson. This includes, but is not limited to, letters, emails, memoranda, meeting
notes, and any other form of communication.
2. Any documents, records, or other information held by the New Zealand Government
that relates to or concerns Peter Mandelson, including references to him in
communications between government officials, ministers, or agencies.
I request that the search cover the full historical period of Peter Mandelson’s ministerial
roles, after his 1992 election as a Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom, as wel
as any information prior to his political tenure. Please include correspondence or
references involving any New Zealand Prime Ministers, Ministers, or government
officials, including, but not limited to, Helen Clark, Christopher Luxon, or other relevant
officeholders.
If the requested information is held in electronic or paper form, I am happy to receive it
in whatever format is most convenient for the agency. If there are any grounds for
withholding information under the OIA, please provide a detailed explanation.”
This office’s holdings commenced on 27 November 2023, with the issuing of the ministerial
warrants. You appear to be seeking information spanning a period of more than 30 years.
On 16 February 2026, we advised you that this office can only respond to your request
insofar as it is for information held by us. We asked that you consider refining your request,
in order to avoid a partial refusal under section 18(g) of the Act. As of the time of writing, you
have not responded to our consultation.
We have interpreted your request to be seeking:
• any written communications or records of meetings between Peter Mandelson and
New Zealand Government officials or ministers, including the Prime Minister (
Part 1)
• any formal briefing documents or written communications held by New Zealand
Government officials or ministers, including the Prime Minister, in which Peter
Mandelson is mentioned (
Part 2).
While you mention 1992 as a possible starting point, you have not specified a timeframe and
appear to be seeking information dating back to the 1980s, if such information exists.
Partial transfer
Insofar as your request pertains to information more closely connected to the foreign affairs
portfolio, I have decided to partially transfer it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
under section 14(b)(i ) of the Act, for information that may be held by that agency.
As concerns correspondence sent or received by former ministers, I believe some of the
information you are seeking may be held by the Department of Internal Affairs. Therefore, I
have decided to partially transfer your request to them under section 14(b)(i) of the Act.
These transfers are with respect to information held by these agencies only. If you are
seeking information that you believe may be held by another minister or agency, I would
encourage you to make separate requests directly to them. The Ministry of Justice’s
Directory of Official Information may assist you:
https://www.justice.govt.nz/about/directory-
of-official-information/. As the statutory timeframes for transferring your request have passed, I have extended these
by 7 working days under section 15A(1)(b) of the Act. This extension is necessary to allow
for the consultation that was required to make a decision on the transfer of your request.
Information to be refused
Searches of this office’s information holdings for correspondence received by this office from
Peter Mandelson for the period 27 November 2023 – 6 February 2026 (inclusive) have
returned no material in scope of your request. This aspect of Part 1 of your request is
therefore refused under section 18(e) of the Act – the information does not exist.
Nor have we identified any formal briefing documents held by this office in which Peter
Mandelson is referenced. Part 2 of your request, excluding the aspects transferred to the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Department of Internal Affairs, is refused under
section 18(g) of the Act. This is because the information you have requested is not held by
this office, and we have no reason to believe it is held by another agency or minister subject
to the Act.
You have the right to ask the Ombudsman to investigate and review my decision under
section 28(3) of the Act.
Yours sincerely,
Cameron Burrows
Chief of Staff
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