Responsibility for veteran navigation outside statutory entitlements (2019–present)
SPENCER JONES made this Official Information request to New Zealand Defence Force
The request was refused by New Zealand Defence Force.
From: SPENCER JONES
Dear New Zealand Defence Force, Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand (VANZ)
(Chief Executive / Policy & Strategy)
Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request the following information held by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand (VANZ):
Please provide any briefings, advice, internal correspondence, emails, reports, or risk assessments held by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand since 1 January 2019 that:
discuss responsibility for assisting veterans to navigate non-statutory support (including charities, community organisations, or mainstream social services);
consider whether lack of structured signposting or navigation outside statutory entitlements poses a risk or disadvantage to veterans;
record decisions to prioritise (or not prioritise) development of navigation or referral mechanisms beyond statutory VANZ functions; or
address the relationship between VANZ, the Veterans’ Advisory Board, and other agencies in relation to veteran navigation and support outside entitlements.
This request does not seek a list or directory of charities. It seeks records that explain how responsibility for veteran navigation outside entitlements has been defined, allocated, or deferred, if any exist.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
From: Ministerial Services
New Zealand Defence Force
Good morning Spencer Jones
Your request below has been received and a decision on your request will be provided as soon as possible and no later than 10 March 2026. Responses to requests for information that are considered to be in the wider public interest will be published on the New Zealand Defence Force website (www.nzdf.mil.nz).
Regards
Corporate and Ministerial Services
Office of the Chief of Defence Force
New Zealand Defence Force | Te Ope Kātua o Aotearoa
www.nzdf.mil.nz
-----Original Message-----
From: SPENCER JONES <[FOI #33683 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 10 February 2026 7:45 pm
To: Ministerial Services <[NZDF request email]>
Subject: Official Information request - Responsibility for veteran navigation outside statutory entitlements (2019–present)
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Dear New Zealand Defence Force, Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand (VANZ) (Chief Executive / Policy & Strategy)
Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request the following information held by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand (VANZ):
Please provide any briefings, advice, internal correspondence, emails, reports, or risk assessments held by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand since 1 January 2019 that:
discuss responsibility for assisting veterans to navigate non-statutory support (including charities, community organisations, or mainstream social services);
consider whether lack of structured signposting or navigation outside statutory entitlements poses a risk or disadvantage to veterans;
record decisions to prioritise (or not prioritise) development of navigation or referral mechanisms beyond statutory VANZ functions; or
address the relationship between VANZ, the Veterans’ Advisory Board, and other agencies in relation to veteran navigation and support outside entitlements.
This request does not seek a list or directory of charities. It seeks records that explain how responsibility for veteran navigation outside entitlements has been defined, allocated, or deferred, if any exist.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
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From: Ministerial Services
New Zealand Defence Force
Good afternoon
Please find attached the response to your request for information.
Regards
Corporate and Ministerial Services
Office of the Chief of Defence Force
New Zealand Defence Force
www.nzdf.mil.nz
-----Original Message-----
From: SPENCER JONES <[FOI #33683 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 10 February 2026 7:45 pm
To: Ministerial Services <[NZDF request email]>
Subject: Official Information request - Responsibility for veteran navigation outside statutory entitlements (2019–present)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization.
Do not follow guidance, click links, or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. If in any doubt, please forward the email to [email address] and then delete the email from your Inbox. Thank you
Dear New Zealand Defence Force, Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand (VANZ) (Chief Executive / Policy & Strategy)
Under the Official Information Act 1982, I request the following information held by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand (VANZ):
Please provide any briefings, advice, internal correspondence, emails, reports, or risk assessments held by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand since 1 January 2019 that:
discuss responsibility for assisting veterans to navigate non-statutory support (including charities, community organisations, or mainstream social services);
consider whether lack of structured signposting or navigation outside statutory entitlements poses a risk or disadvantage to veterans;
record decisions to prioritise (or not prioritise) development of navigation or referral mechanisms beyond statutory VANZ functions; or
address the relationship between VANZ, the Veterans’ Advisory Board, and other agencies in relation to veteran navigation and support outside entitlements.
This request does not seek a list or directory of charities. It seeks records that explain how responsibility for veteran navigation outside entitlements has been defined, allocated, or deferred, if any exist.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #33683 email]
Is [NZDF request email] the wrong address for Official Information requests to New Zealand Defence Force? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
The information contained in this Internet Email message is intended
for the addressee only and may contain privileged information, but not
necessarily the official views or opinions of the New Zealand Defence Force.
If you are not the intended recipient you must not use, disclose, copy or
distribute this message or the information in it.
If you have received this message in error, please Email or telephone
the sender immediately.
hide quoted sections
SPENCER JONES left an annotation ()
Public Annotation – Veterans’ Affairs Navigation Responsibility (OIA-2026-5662)
For transparency, I record the outcome of this request.
Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand (VANZ), through NZDF Headquarters, has refused the request under section 18(e) of the Official Information Act 1982, on the basis that no information relevant to the request exists .
The request sought any briefings, advice, internal correspondence, reports, or risk assessments since 1 January 2019 that:
• Discuss responsibility for assisting veterans to navigate non-statutory support (including charities, community organisations, or mainstream services);
• Consider whether lack of structured navigation outside statutory entitlements poses risk or disadvantage;
• Record decisions about prioritising (or not prioritising) navigation mechanisms beyond statutory functions; or
• Address the relationship between VANZ, the Veterans’ Advisory Board, and other agencies regarding veteran navigation outside entitlements.
The response states that VANZ’s responsibilities are strictly defined by the Veterans’ Support Act 2014, and that it has no authority to develop support mechanisms beyond its statutory remit. On that basis, it asserts that no information relevant to the request was identified .
⸻
Why This Matters
This refusal does not dispute that veterans may require assistance navigating non-statutory support.
It asserts that, because such assistance sits outside the statutory mandate, no internal records exist discussing responsibility for it.
The public-interest issue raised by this outcome is structural rather than procedural:
• If responsibility for navigation outside statutory entitlements is not defined within VANZ;
• And if no briefings, risk assessments, or internal discussions have occurred since 2019 regarding potential disadvantage arising from lack of structured signposting;
• Then this suggests that the issue may fall between institutional boundaries rather than within them.
In other words, the question becomes not whether VANZ has authority to expand its remit, but whether any part of the veteran-support system has formally considered:
• Gaps between statutory entitlements and real-world navigation needs;
• The interaction between VANZ, the Veterans’ Advisory Board, charities, and mainstream services;
• And whether absence of coordinated referral mechanisms presents systemic disadvantage.
The response indicates that no such records are held.
⸻
Governance Context
The Veterans’ Support Act 2014 defines eligibility and entitlements.
However, navigation through broader social support ecosystems (housing, mental health services, charities, advocacy groups, mainstream agencies) frequently intersects with veterans’ lived experience.
If no internal analysis, risk assessment, or briefing material exists on this interface since 2019, this may indicate:
• A strictly compartmentalised interpretation of statutory mandate;
• Limited cross-boundary governance visibility; or
• A policy question reserved exclusively for ministerial or legislative review.
The reference in the response to a potential future review following the Paterson Report underscores that broader structural questions are recognised at a policy level, even if not addressed administratively.
⸻
Procedural Position
This OIA has been formally refused under section 18(e) and is procedurally complete.
No clarification has been sought by the agency.
No partial information has been withheld under other refusal grounds.
The refusal stands on the assertion that no relevant information exists.
Things to do with this request
- Add an annotation (to help the requester or others)
- Download a zip file of all correspondence (note: this contains the same information already available above).
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SPENCER JONES left an annotation ()
Context and purpose of this request
This Official Information Act request follows two earlier NZDF / Veterans’ Advisory Board requests (#33397 and #33398), which confirmed that no lists, directories, briefings, or internal records exist showing visibility of veteran charities, community-based support organisations, or navigation/signposting frameworks outside statutory entitlements.
Those responses established a clear factual position: while veteran wellbeing and recognition are discussed at a high level, no central mechanism appears to exist within Defence or its advisory structures to ensure that veterans can be effectively navigated to non-statutory or community-based support.
This request does not seek lists, directories, or inventories of services. It seeks to understand whether Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand, as the steward of veteran policy and entitlements, has:
• considered responsibility for veteran navigation outside statutory entitlements;
• assessed risks arising from lack of coordination or visibility of non-statutory support; or
• provided internal advice on whether such navigation should sit within VANZ, another agency, or nowhere at all.
The purpose of this request is to clarify where responsibility is understood to sit (if anywhere), and why the gap confirmed in earlier OIAs persists.
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