11 May 2026
P Peach
[FYI request #34282 email] Tēnā koe P Peach
Your request for official information, reference: HNZ00202117 Thank you for your email on 28 April 2026, asking Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora (Health
NZ) for information under the Official Information Act 1982 (the OIA) regarding NAATI credential
compliance, subcontracting practices and national oversight of interpreting and translation services
in Health NZ. Your full original request and the subsequent refinement is set out at the bottom of
this letter.
Response
Please note that the data in this response is provisional and used for operational purposes. It has
not been through the full quality assurance process that we use before publishing data and
therefore is subject to change.
For the sake of clarity, I wil address each question in turn.
SECTION A: NATIONAL OVERSIGHT AND PROCUREMENT STRUCTURE
1. Whether Health New Zealand has a national policy or framework governing the
procurement and delivery of interpreting and translation services, or whether
procurement decisions are made independently by each regional division.
Health NZ does not have a national policy or framework governing the procurement and delivery of
interpreting services at present. Health NZ is working on increasing regional and national
consistency across all our services including Interpreting services.
Please note that, currently, for Te Toka Tumai, decisions about the procurement and delivery of
interpreting and translation services are made independently by this district.
2. A list of all external interpreting and translation providers currently contracted to
Health New Zealand at a national or regional level, including the region they serve,
the commencement and expiry date of each arrangement, and whether the contract
was competitively tendered.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai use the following external agencies when required:
• Connect Interpreting – on site and video Sign Language Interpreters
• Deaf Aotearoa – on site and video Sign Language interpreters
• Decypher – telephone and video interpreters for all languages
• Connecting Now – telephone and video interpreters for all languages
These providers all participated in a MBIE tender process to provide interpreting services to
Government agencies.
Please note, Te Toka Tumai does not currently have individual contracts with these external
agencies, but the Health NZ procurement team is currently working on getting contracts in place.
Canterbury | Waitaha
In Canterbury, Health NZ Hospital and Specialist services has an internal interpreting service and
uses external Interpreting NZ and Connecting Now if they cannot provide a contracted interpreter.
Canterbury provides interpreting services for deaf patients through iSign.
Canterbury Primary Health Organisations (PHOs) and community-based service providers have
their own arrangements for the provision of interpreting services. Health NZ does not have
oversight of these contractual arrangements. I am refusing your request under section 18(g) of the
OIA as the information you have requested is not held by Health NZ and we have no grounds to
believe that the information is held by another entity subject to the OIA.
The interpreters are independent contractors. There is no tender process.
External interpreting service providers used in Canterbury participated in a MBIE tender process to
provide interpreting services to Government agencies. The Health NZ procurement team is
currently working on contracts for these providers across all Districts.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley (CCHV)
CCHV use the following external agencies when required:
• Interpreting New Zealand – Face to Face Interpreters
• Deaf Aotearoa – on site and video Sign Language interpreters
• Decypher – telephone and video interpreters for all languages
• Connecting Now – telephone and video interpreters for all languages
• Straker translations – Face to face and video interpreters for all languages
These providers all participated in a MBIE interpreting services tender process. CCHV does not
currently have individual contracts with these external agencies, but the Health New Zealand
procurement team is currently working on getting contracts in place.
3. Whether any regional divisions of Health New Zealand participate in the MBIE
Language Assistance Services panel contracts for telephone, video, or face-to-face
interpreting, and if so which divisions and under what arrangements.
Health NZ does not participate in the MBIE Language Assistance Services panel contracts for
telephone, video, or face-to-face interpreting.
Therefore, your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this
information does not exist.
4. For regional divisions that operate their own in-house interpreting services (such
as Te Toka Tumai Auckland), details of how those services are structured, including
the number of interpreters employed or contracted, the languages covered, and the
employment status of practitioners (directly employed, contracted, or casual).
Auckland Te Toka Tumai
In-house interpreting service for Te Toka Tumai includes:
• Permanent Interpreters – 10 FTE - Mandarin, Cantonese, French, Tahitian, Urdu, Hindi,
Bengali
• Independent Contractors – 215 – who work on a required basis
The following languages are covered by independent contractors: Afghani Dari, Albanian, Amharic,
Arabic, Assyrian, Bahasa Indonesia, Bengali, Bosnian, Burmese, Burundi, Cambodian, Cantonese,
Chin (Burmese Dialect), Cook Island, Croatian, Eritrean, Ethiopian, Fijian Hindi, Fijian Native,
Filipino Tagalog, French, German, Gujarati, Hindi, Hokkein, Iranian Farsi, Italian, Japanese, Karen,
Kinyamulenge, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Korean, Kurdish, Kurmanji, Lao, Macedonian, Mnadarin,
Mongolian, Nepalese, Niuean, Portuguese, Punjabi, Pushtu, Rohingya, Romanian, Russian,
Samoan, Serbian, Shanghainese, Singhalese, Solomon Islands Pijin, Somali, Spanish, Sudanese
Arabic, Swahili, Tahitian, Taishanese, Taiwanese, Tamil, Teochew, Thai, Tigrinya, Tongan,
Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vanuatu Bislama, and Vietnamese.
Canterbury | Waitaha
Health NZ Canterbury Medical and Surgical has an Interpreter Service for inpatients, outpatient
appointments, and patients receiving services in the community. We also provide interpreters for
some outsourced consultations or procedures and some community services, such as Canterbury
Breastcare.
Interpreter Services uses casual contractors, vets them under the Children's Act 2014 and the
Children's Regulations 2015 and seeks references before enlisting them. Please also refer to our
response to question 2 of this OIA.
We have a current list of 86 interpreters and there is no limit on the languages covered.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
CCHV outsources its interpreting services.
5. The total expenditure by Health New Zealand on interpreting and translation
services — both in-house and externally procured — for each financial year [FY]
from 2019/20 to 2024/25, and year-to-date for 2025/26, broken down by regional
division and provider where available.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Please refer to the attached
Appendix 1 which is an Excel Spreadsheet with the requested
information. Please refer specifically to the sheet labelled ‘Auckland Q.5’.
Canterbury | Waitaha
Please refer to the attached
Appendix 1, specifically to the sheet labelled ‘Canterbury Q.5’. This
sets out the 2021/22 FY to 2025/26 FY (9 months YTD) indicative spend for Canterbury district.
Please note that we cannot provide a breakdown by individual provider due to commercial
sensitivity. Therefore, this information is withheld under section 9(2)(b)(i ) of the OIA as, if released,
it would be likely to unreasonably prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied or
who is the subject of the information.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
Please refer to the attached
Appendix 1, specifically to the sheet labelled ‘CCHV Q.5’. Please also
note that data prior to its formation (1 July 2022) is not available; therefore, the information
provided is from the 2023/24 financial year onwards.
Please note that where there are no figures, it means there was no translation required. For
example, in 2022, there was no Bengali translation required.
6. The total number of interpreting sessions or assignments delivered under Health
New Zealand contracts for each financial year from 2019/20 to 2024/25, and year-to-
date for 2025/26, broken down by regional division, service type (telephone, video,
face-to-face, in-house), and language where available.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Please refer to the attached
Appendix 1, specifically to the sheet labelled ‘Auckland Q.6’. The
table shows the number of interpreting assignments delivered and is broken down by each service
type and financial year.
Canterbury | Waitaha
This information is not readily available and wil require considerable resource to extract it from the
database. Health NZ is unable to provide you with this information as it is held in notes on
individual case files. In order to provide you with this information, our staff would have to manual y
review thousands of files. As such, we refuse your request under section 18(f) of the OIA.
I have considered whether fixing a charge for the supply of the information or extending
the timeframe for response would enable Health NZ to respond. I do not consider that
either option would remove the impact that supplying the information would have on our other
operations.
While we cannot provide what you have requested, we can note with you that in the 2025/26
Financial Year, Health NZ Waitaha Medical and Surgical Interpreter Service recorded 18,424
appointments. This equates to approximately 1,535 bookings per month.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
Please refer to the attached
Appendix 1, specifically to the sheet labelled ‘CCHV Q.6’. Please
note that the language data breakdown is based on information from the two largest providers,
Interpreting NZ and Connecting Now. The breakdown of languages is based on Vendor.
Please note that where there are no figures in the spreadsheet, means that no translation was
required for that specific language.
SECTION B: SUBCONTRACTING ARRANGEMENTS
7. Whether Health New Zealand's external interpreting and translation providers are
permitted to subcontract assignments to third parties, including overseas-based
agencies or individual contractors located outside New Zealand.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai does not use any interpreters from overseas as individual contractors. However,
we use Connecting Now as an agency which is based in Australia.
Canterbury | Waitaha
There is no Health NZ national interpreting service contract in place. Decisions about the use of
overseas contractors or subcontract assignments sit at district level. Your request for this
information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does not exist.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
Interpreters are primarily located in New Zealand with work being transferred to Australian
interpreters where there is no New Zealand interpreter available in the selected language. On
average 85-90% of all interpreting calls for Health NZ are handled by New Zealand interpreters;
any calls being responded to by Australian interpreters requires two mandatory conditions be met:
• they are NAATI accredited; and
• have completed the Working in Aotearoa in the Public Service Context e-learning modules.
8. Any conditions or restrictions in Health New Zealand's contracts with interpreting
and translation providers regarding the use of subcontractors, including any
requirements that subcontractors be based in New Zealand or hold an appropriate
New Zealand work visa.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Al Te Toka Tumai in-house contractors must be based in New Zealand and hold a New Zealand
working visa. Te Toka Tumai do not contract any individuals from overseas.
Canterbury | Waitaha
There is no Health NZ national interpreting service contract in place for Waitaha. As such your
request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does not
exist.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
The use of sub-contractors is managed by the provider of translation/interpreting– Health NZ does
not hold any information on the subcontractors/interpreters.
9. Whether Health New Zealand requires providers to disclose the identity, location,
or credentials of individual interpreters or translators — including subcontractors —
who carry out assignments on Health New Zealand's behalf.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
No.
Canterbury Waitaha
Please refer to our response to part 7 of this OIA.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
Yes, the interpreter details wil be made available at the booking and they wil identify themselves.
Interpreters wil identify themselves at the commencement of the assignment and further detail is
sent as part of the Customer Detail Report monthly, including name, ID and NAATI accreditation
level.
10. For regional divisions that operate in-house services and exhaust their in-house
capacity: what arrangements exist for overflow demand, including whether in-house
services subcontract to external providers or individual interpreters, and on what
terms.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
The Te Toka Tumai interpreter booking process prioritises the permanent interpreters first. Any
additional assignments are then allocated to contracted interpreters. Once these resources have
been fully utilised, a request(s) is submitted to Waitematā and Counties Manukau interpreting
services, or other external agencies. The last option is to use interpreters from the external
agencies.
Canterbury | Waitaha
Health NZ Waitaha Medical and Surgical Interpreter Service uses Connecting Now and Interpreting
New Zealand if we are unable to provide a contracted interpreter.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
CCHV uses outsourced interpreting services.
11. Any instances where Health New Zealand became aware that an assignment was
conducted by a person located outside New Zealand or by an uncredentialled
subcontractor, and any action taken as a result.
Auckland Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai is not aware of any assignments being conducted by a person outside New
Zealand, other than when using an agency such as Connecting Now who are based in Australia.
Te Toka Tumai is not aware of any assignments being conducted by an un-credentialled
subcontractor. Therefore, your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of
the OIA as this information does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be
found.
Canterbury Waitaha, Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
Canterbury and CCHV are not aware of any assignments being conducted by an un-credentialled
subcontractor. Therefore, your request for this information is also refused under section 18(e) of
the OIA.
SECTION C: NAATI CREDENTIAL COMPLIANCE
12. What mechanism, if any, Health New Zealand uses at a national level to verify that
individual interpreters and translators — whether in-house, externally contracted, or
subcontracted — hold a valid NAATI credential or Working Towards NAATI (WTN)
status.
There is no Health NZ national verification process in place. However, districts may have their own
verification processes. Currently Health NZ does not require NAATI credential ing to work as an
interpreter in our services. This is managed by Vendor – Vendor has internal professional
standards and audits.
Please note that Te Toka Tumai has opted out of the NAATI initiative as a compulsory qualification
for their interpreters.
13. Whether individual regional divisions have their own credential verification
processes, and if so whether Health New Zealand holds any information about what
those processes are.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai only employ / contract interpreters who hold an Interpreting or Translation
qualification from either AUT or Unitec.
Canterbury | Waitaha
No, therefore, your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this
information does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
CCHV does not have a national policy or framework governing the procurement and delivery of
interpreting services at present. Therefore, your request for this information is refused under
section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it,
cannot be found.
14. Whether Health New Zealand requires its external interpreting and translation
providers to maintain and supply a current register of credentialled practitioners
working under Health New Zealand contracts, and if so whether such registers have
been received and reviewed.
There is no Health NZ national register of credentialled practitioners in place.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai does not maintain a list of currently credentialled practitioners from our external
agencies. However, these agencies exclusively work with qualified interpreters.
Canterbury Waitaha
No, therefore, your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this
information does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
Managed by Vendor – Vendor has internal professional standards and audits to maintain industry
standards ISO 9001 Certified as outlined at the following link:
https://www.interpret.org.nz/_files/ugd/43f3fe_e90f0101c7e8484e8ba887ec95ec3d92.pdf.
15. Any audits, spot checks, or compliance reviews conducted by Health New
Zealand — at a national or regional level — on its interpreting and translation
providers or in-house services since 1 July 2024 to verify NAATI credential
compliance, including the methodology and findings of any such reviews.
No audits, spot checks or compliance reviews have been conducted by Health NZ at national level.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai has opted out of the NAATI initiative as a mandatory qualification for interpreters.
Canterbury | Waitaha
We recognise the valuable expertise of experienced health interpreters in New Zealand, as well as
the importance of New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) qualifications. We wil ensure
adherence to high standards and provide ongoing training and development opportunities for
interpreters in healthcare settings. NAATI credentialling is not a mandated requirement by Health
NZ, nationally, so no audits or reviews are conducted.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
Health NZ does not have a national policy or framework governing the procurement and delivery of
interpreting services at present. Please note that our Interpreters are managed by the Vendor –
Requirement of the vendor that Interpreters working across Health NZ must hold NAATI
accreditation or be working towards accreditation.
Al interpreters have a valid police/conviction check and are governed by the NZSTI Code of
Ethics, AUSIT Code of Ethics and Conduct.
16. Any instances since 1 July 2024 where a provider or in-house interpreter was
found not to hold the required NAATI credential or Working Towards NAATI (WTN)
status, and any consequences or remedial action taken.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai has opted out of the NAATI initiative as a mandatory qualification for our
interpreters
Canterbury | Waitaha
As noted above, NAATI credentialling is not a mandated requirement by Health NZ. Therefore,
your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does
not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
CCHV is not aware of such instances, therefore, your request for this information is refused under
section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it,
cannot be found.
17. Any complaints received by Health New Zealand since 1 July 2024 from staff,
patients, or members of the public regarding the qualifications or conduct of an
interpreter or translator, and any actions taken.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai has not received any complaints since 1 July 2024 regarding the qualifications of
an interpreter or translator.
Te Toka Tumai has had two complaints since 1 July 2024 regarding the conduct of an interpreter
or translator. In both cases the complaint was investigated, and feedback and coaching were
provided to the interpreters involved.
Canterbury | Waitaha
Since 1 July 2024, Health NZ Canterbury Medical and Surgical Interpreter Service has received
eight complaints in total. Four have been about specific interpreters and four about general issues,
such as no interpreter booked, lack of availability, and cancelled appointments. The complaints
about specific interpreters have been managed with a combination of meetings, telephone calls,
and letters.
SECTION D: INTERPRETER AND TRANSLATOR PAY VISIBILITY
18. Whether Health New Zealand has any information about the rates or fees paid by
its external providers to individual interpreters or translators for assignments
conducted on Health New Zealand's behalf.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai does not have any information on how much our external providers pay their
interpreters. Therefore, your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of
the OIA as this information does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be
found.
Canterbury | Waitaha
Health NZ Waitaha Medical and Surgical Interpreter Service does not hold this information. While
Health NZ knows what we are charged, we do not know what the individuals receive. Therefore,
your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this information
does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
CCHV does not have the requested information. Therefore, I am refusing your request under
section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it,
cannot be found.
19. The pay rates or remuneration bands applicable to in-house interpreters
employed or contracted by Health New Zealand regional divisions, where this
information is held centrally.
There are no Health NZ national pay rates or remuneration bands in place.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Contracted interpreters at Te Toka Tumai are paid as per the Al ied, Public Health, Scientific and
Technical PSA Collective Agreement. Please see the following table as reference:
Core Scale – Group B 1 June 2023 4 Sept 2023
2 Sept 2024
Step 7
$80,193
$84,193
$86,719
Step 6
$76,374
$80,374
$82,785
Step 5
$72,737
$76,737
$79,039
Step 4
$69,273
$73,273
$75,471
Step 3
$65,975
$69,975
$72,074
Canterbury | Waitaha
Your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does
not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
CCHV uses outsourced interpreting services.
20. Whether Health New Zealand has ever sought, as part of contract negotiations,
tendering processes, or performance reviews, any information about the pay or
working conditions of interpreters or translators engaged through its provider
contracts.
Health NZ has not sought as part of contract negotiations tendering processes, or performance
reviews, any information about the pay or working conditions of interpreters or translators engaged
through its provider contracts.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
Te Toka Tumai has never sought, as part of contract negotiations, tendering processes, or
performance reviews, any information about the pay or working conditions of interpreters or
translators engaged through its provider contracts.
Canterbury | Waitaha
Canterbury has not sought information about the pay or working conditions of interpreters or
translators engaged through its provider contracts. Therefore, your request for this information is
refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does not exist or, despite reasonable
efforts to locate it, cannot be found.
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
CCHV has not sought information about the pay or working conditions of interpreters or translators
engaged through its provider contracts. Therefore, your request for this information is refused
under section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to
locate it, cannot be found
21. Any internal policies, briefings, risk assessments, or correspondence within
Health New Zealand regarding the fair remuneration or employment conditions of
interpreters and translators, including any concerns raised about the margin
between rates paid to external providers and rates passed on to practitioners.
Auckland | Te Toka Tumai
No such documents exist at Te Toka Tumai; therefore, this part of your request is refused under
section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does not exist.
Canterbury | Waitaha
Waitaha operates an in-house Interpreting Service supporting hospital and specialist services
across the Christchurch City region (excluding Ashburton). The service is managed within Medical
and Surgical Services through the Customer Services Office.
It provides interpreting only; translation services are procured separately from accredited providers.
Interpreters are contracted by language, including New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL).
Interpreter costs are charged to the requesting service. Administrative processes, including
invoicing, are outdated, although improvements are currently underway with support from Finance.
There are two historical rate structures in place. Please note that these rates have not been
reviewed or increased for over 10 years.
• A higher rate for NZSL interpreters
• A standard rate for all other interpreters
Please note, to avoid withholding information under section 9(2)(a) of the OIA, such as
correspondence containing personal information of individual interpreters, we have provided a
summary of the communication/correspondence relevant to this part of the OIA for Health NZ
Canterbury.
Summary of Interpreter Rate Review Timeline based on relevant Correspondence:
• Ongoing issue (2022–2023): Interpreters repeatedly asked when their rates would be
reviewed. This was escalated to leadership, but there was no clear process or outcome
• July 2023: Interpreters formally requested a rate increase as a group. Escalated to senior
management, but no action was taken
• October 2023: Canterbury made a submission to the national interpreting work. No
recorded outcome
• November 2023: National decision: Directly employed interpreters received a 30% pay
increase and lump sum payment. Contracted interpreters (this group) were not included
• January 2024 (multiple developments):
o A national stocktake was completed and guidance on rate reviews was requested.
No response received
o A case was submitted asking how to review rates. Response advised it must be
managed local y within budget, with no national solution
o An interpreter withdrew services, leading to greater reliance on external agencies
• April 2024: National leadership endorsed improving interpreting services nationwide.
However, no detailed outcomes or guidance were provided yet
Capital Coast and Hutt Valley
Your request for this information is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as this information does
not exist or, despite reasonable efforts to locate it, cannot be found
How to get in touch
If you have any questions, you can contact us at
[email address]. If you are not happy with this response, you have the right to make a complaint to the
Ombudsman. Information about how to do this is available at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
by phoning 0800 802 602.
As this information may be of interest to other members of the public, Health NZ may proactively
release a copy of this response on our website. Al requester data, including your name and
contact details, wil be removed prior to release.
Nāku iti noa, nā
Matthew McLay Manager Government Services
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora
Refinement
On 9 April 2026, we contacted you requesting to refine and clarify your OIA request,
“Health NZ has undertaken an initial scoping exercise on your request with our business
units and across our regions and 18 Health NZ Districts. The information you have requested includes the time period when Health NZ did not exist
(prior to 1 July 2022). Before it was established on 1 July 2022 there were 20 former
District Health Boards (DHBs) in existence and each procured its own services. To collate
and prepare the information requested would be a substantive collation and research
exercise across all former DHBs and the current Health NZ districts. This means your
request may be refused under section 18(f) of the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). We
would like to work with you to avoid this and ensure we can provide a response that best
meets your needs.
Suggested refinement. We invite you to consider the following refinement.
•
You narrow the scope of your request to a specific Health NZ district. A link to the
districts can be found here: https://www.healthnz.govt.nz/about-us/what-we-do/our-
regions
•
For your selected district the timeframe for your request is for the 2025/2026
Financial Year.
In addition, could you please confirm that the interpretation services are for spoken
languages only or include the translation of written material into other languages.”
On 10 April 2026, you replied with the following,
“Thank you for your response and for the initial scoping exercise. I am happy to work with
Health NZ to refine my request and appreciate the constructive approach.
I accept that collating information across former District Health Boards prior to 1 July 2022
would be unduly burdensome, and I am happy to limit my request to the Health NZ period
only.
In terms of district scope, I propose narrowing my request to the three largest Health NZ
districts by population: Auckland (Te Toka Tumai), Wellington (Capital, Coast and Hutt
Valley), and Canterbury (Te Whatu Ora Waitaha). I consider this a reasonable middle
ground focused on the districts most likely to hold substantial and comparable information
on interpreting procurement.
In terms of timeframe, I propose the period from 1 July 2022 (the establishment of Health
NZ) to the date of response, including year-to-date figures for 2025/26. This covers three
full financial years within the Health NZ era and captures the period both before and after
the NAATI credentialling requirement came into force on 1 July 2024, which is directly
relevant to my request.
To confirm the scope of services: my request covers spoken language interpreting services
and written translation services, for community and ethnic languages and te reo Māori. It
does not extend to New Zealand Sign Language.
I confirm that my request is otherwise unchanged across all sections - subcontracting
arrangements, NAATI credential compliance, and interpreter pay visibility - as these apply
to the three districts and timeframe specified above.
Response to section 18(f)
I note that section 18(f) is a discretionary ground for refusal, and that the Ombudsman's
guidelines require agencies to consider releasing parts of a request that can be answered
without substantial collation even where other parts cannot. I ask that Health NZ evaluate
each of my questions individually and release answers to those that can be provided
without substantial collation, identifying by question number any questions it considers
require further research.
I also note that several of my questions are policy and process questions requiring no
collation of records - for example, whether providers are permitted to subcontract, whether
credential registers are required, and whether procurement criteria include consideration of
practitioner pay. These can be answered from existing policy knowledge and do not engage
section 18(f).
Given the significant public interest in accountability around publicly funded health services
and compliance with the NAATI credentialling requirements, I ask that Health NZ exercise
its discretion in favour of release where any doubt exists.
If Health NZ intends to refuse any part of this request, I ask that it provide written reasons
specific to each question refused so that I may consider whether to refer the matter to the
Office of the Ombudsman.”
Full Original Request
SECTION A: NATIONAL OVERSIGHT AND PROCUREMENT STRUCTURE 1. Whether Health New Zealand has a national policy or framework governing the procurement
and delivery of interpreting and translation services, or whether procurement decisions are made
independently by each regional division. 2. A list of all external interpreting and translation providers currently contracted to Health New
Zealand at a national or regional level, including the region they serve, the commencement and
expiry date of each arrangement, and whether the contract was competitively tendered. 3. Whether any regional divisions of Health New Zealand participate in the MBIE Language
Assistance Services panel contracts for telephone, video, or face-to-face interpreting, and if so
which divisions and under what arrangements. 4. For regional divisions that operate their own in-house interpreting services (such as Te Toka
Tumai Auckland), details of how those services are structured, including the number of interpreters
employed or contracted, the languages covered, and the employment status of practitioners
(directly employed, contracted, or casual). 5. The total expenditure by Health New Zealand on interpreting and translation services — both in-
house and external y procured — for each financial year from 2019/20 to 2024/25, and year-to-
date for 2025/26, broken down by regional division and provider where available. 6. The total number of interpreting sessions or assignments delivered under Health New Zealand
contracts for each financial year from 2019/20 to 2024/25, and year-to-date for 2025/26, broken
down by regional division, service type (telephone, video, face-to-face, in-house), and language
where available. --- SECTION B: SUBCONTRACTING ARRANGEMENTS 7. Whether Health New Zealand's external interpreting and translation providers are permitted to
subcontract assignments to third parties, including overseas-based agencies or individual
contractors located outside New Zealand. 8. Any conditions or restrictions in Health New Zealand's contracts with interpreting and translation
providers regarding the use of subcontractors, including any requirements that subcontractors be
based in New Zealand or hold an appropriate New Zealand work visa. 9. Whether Health New Zealand requires providers to disclose the identity, location, or credentials
of individual interpreters or translators — including subcontractors — who carry out assignments
on Health New Zealand's behalf. 10. For regional divisions that operate in-house services and exhaust their in-house capacity: what
arrangements exist for overflow demand, including whether in-house services subcontract to
external providers or individual interpreters, and on what terms. 11. Any instances where Health New Zealand became aware that an assignment was conducted
by a person located outside New Zealand or by an uncredentialled subcontractor, and any action
taken as a result.
--- SECTION C: NAATI CREDENTIAL COMPLIANCE 12. What mechanism, if any, Health New Zealand uses at a national level to verify that individual
interpreters and translators — whether in-house, external y contracted, or subcontracted — hold a
valid NAATI credential or Working Towards NAATI (WTN) status. 13. Whether individual regional divisions have their own credential verification processes, and if so
whether Health New Zealand holds any information about what those processes are. 14. Whether Health New Zealand requires its external interpreting and translation providers to
maintain and supply a current register of credentialled practitioners working under Health New
Zealand contracts, and if so whether such registers have been received and reviewed. 15. Any audits, spot checks, or compliance reviews conducted by Health New Zealand — at a
national or regional level — on its interpreting and translation providers or in-house services since
1 July 2024 to verify NAATI credential compliance, including the methodology and findings of any
such reviews. 16. Any instances since 1 July 2024 where a provider or in-house interpreter was found not to hold
the required NAATI credential or Working Towards NAATI (WTN) status, and any consequences or
remedial action taken. 17. Any complaints received by Health New Zealand since 1 July 2024 from staff, patients, or
members of the public regarding the qualifications or conduct of an interpreter or translator, and
any actions taken. --- SECTION D: INTERPRETER AND TRANSLATOR PAY VISIBILITY 18. Whether Health New Zealand has any information about the rates or fees paid by its external
providers to individual interpreters or translators for assignments conducted on Health New
Zealand's behalf. 19. The pay rates or remuneration bands applicable to in-house interpreters employed or
contracted by Health New Zealand regional divisions, where this information is held centrally. 20. Whether Health New Zealand has ever sought, as part of contract negotiations, tendering
processes, or performance reviews, any information about the pay or working conditions of
interpreters or translators engaged through its provider contracts. 21. Any internal policies, briefings, risk assessments, or correspondence within Health New
Zealand regarding the fair remuneration or employment conditions of interpreters and translators,
including any concerns raised about the margin between rates paid to external providers and rates
passed on to practitioners.
