Dear  Joshua

On behalf of Hon Todd McClay, thank you for your email of 26 April 2026
which includes as official information request as follows:

 

 1. All communications (including emails, text messages, WhatsApp / Signal
/ other messaging app correspondence, letters, briefings, file notes,
meeting minutes, and diary entries) between staff of  the Office of the
Minister for Trade and Investment and any of the following parties, where
the subject matter relates to the New Zealand–India Free Trade Agreement
or to the promotion, amplification, or social media coverage of statements
by the Prime Minister or the Minister for Trade and Investment regarding
India or the FTA:

 

a. Social media influencers, content creators, or operators of social
media accounts (including but not limited to accounts on X/Twitter,
Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, and WhatsApp);

 

b. Public relations, communications, marketing, or digital strategy firms
or consultants;

 

c. Media organisations, journalists, or media-buying agencies based in
India or primarily serving Indian audiences;

 

d. Diaspora organisations, community groups, or business councils with a
focus on India–New Zealand relations;

 

e. Officials, agencies, or representatives of the Government of India
(including the Indian High Commission to New Zealand, the Ministry of
External Affairs, and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry) where those
communications relate to social media activity, content sharing, or
coordinated promotion;

 

f. Any third party engaged or paid (whether by [agency], by another
government agency, or by a contracted intermediary) to promote, amplify,
share, retweet, like, or otherwise increase the reach of social media
content concerning the India FTA.

 

2. Any contracts, statements of work, purchase orders, invoices, or
financial records relating to the engagement of any party for the purpose
of social media amplification, influencer marketing, audience targeting,
or coordinated promotion of messaging concerning the India FTA, including
any spend on paid amplification on X/Twitter or other platforms.

 

3. Any internal strategy documents, communications plans, media plans, or
briefings concerning the digital or social media communications strategy
for the India FTA, including any analysis, monitoring, or reporting on
social media engagement (e.g. retweets, likes, follower analytics) of
posts by the Prime Minister or the Minister for Trade and Investment
relating to India or the FTA.

 

4. Any correspondence with platforms (including X Corp / Twitter, Meta,
Google) regarding the promotion, boosting, or analytics of posts relating
to the India FTA.

For the avoidance of doubt, this request includes communications conducted
on personal devices or non-government accounts where they relate to
official business, in line with the Ombudsman's guidance on the OIA.

 

If any part of this request is considered too broad or would require
substantial collation under section 18(f), I would appreciate the
opportunity to refine the scope rather than have the request refused.
Please contact me before invoking that section.

 

I would prefer to receive the information by email, in its original
electronic format where possible.

 

I note the statutory timeframe of 20 working days under section 15(1) of
the Act and look forward to your response.

 

We will endeavour to respond to your request as soon as possible and in
any event no later than 20 working days after the day your request was
received.  

If we are unable to respond to your request within the appropriate
timeframe, we will notify you of an extension of that timeframe. If your
OIA request requires full or part transfer, we will contact you within the
required timeframe.

Kind regards

 

Office of Hon. Todd McClay | MP for Rotorua

Minister of Agriculture | Minister of Forestry | Minister for Trade and
Investment

Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs
Parliament Buildings, Wellington 6160, New Zealand

E: [1][Todd McClay request email]

 

Disclaimer: The information in this email (including attachments) is
confidential and may be legally privileged. If an addressing or
transmission error has misdirected this email, please notify the author by
replying to this email and destroy the message. If you are not the
intended recipient, any use, disclosure, copying or distribution is
prohibited and may be unlawful.

 

 

 

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Dear Joshua,
 
I am writing concerning your Official Information Act 1982 [the Act]
request of 26 April which asks for:
 
1. All communications (including emails, text messages, WhatsApp / Signal
/ other messaging app correspondence, letters, briefings, file notes,
meeting minutes, and diary entries) between staff of  the Office of the
Minister for Trade and Investment and any of the following parties, where
the subject matter relates to the New Zealand–India Free Trade Agreement
or to the promotion, amplification, or social media coverage of statements
by the Prime Minister or the Minister for Trade and Investment regarding
India or the FTA:
 
a. Social media influencers, content creators, or operators of social
media accounts (including but not limited to accounts on X/Twitter,
Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, and WhatsApp);
 
                        b. Public relations, communications, marketing, or
digital strategy firms or consultants;
 
                        c. Media organisations, journalists, or
media-buying agencies based in India or primarily serving Indian
audiences;
 
                        d. Diaspora organisations, community groups, or
business councils with a focus on India–New Zealand relations;
 
e. Officials, agencies, or representatives of the Government of India
(including the Indian High Commission to New Zealand, the Ministry of
External Affairs, and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry) where those
communications relate to social media activity, content sharing, or
coordinated promotion;
 
f. Any third party engaged or paid (whether by [agency], by another
government agency, or by a contracted intermediary) to promote, amplify,
share, retweet, like, or otherwise increase the reach of social
media       content concerning the India FTA.
 
2. Any contracts, statements of work, purchase orders, invoices, or
financial records relating to the engagement of any party for the purpose
of social media amplification, influencer marketing, audience targeting,
or coordinated promotion of messaging concerning the India FTA, including
any spend on paid amplification on X/Twitter or other platforms.
 
3. Any internal strategy documents, communications plans, media plans, or
briefings concerning the digital or social media communications strategy
for the India FTA, including any analysis, monitoring, or reporting
on        social media engagement (e.g. retweets, likes, follower
analytics) of posts by the Prime Minister or the Minister for Trade and
Investment relating to India or the FTA.
 
        4. Any correspondence with platforms (including X Corp / Twitter,
Meta, Google) regarding the promotion, boosting, or analytics of posts
relating to the India FTA.
For the avoidance of doubt, this request includes communications conducted
on personal devices or non-government accounts where they relate to
official business, in line with the Ombudsman's guidance on the OIA.
 
If any part of this request is considered too broad or would require
substantial collation under section 18(f), I would appreciate the
opportunity to refine the scope rather than have the request refused.
Please contact me before invoking that section.
 
 
Please accept our sincere apologies for not processing your request within
required timeframe. Due to an administrative error, your request was
unfortunately overlooked and was not actioned as it should have been.
 
We have now identified the issue and have begun processing your request as
a matter of priority. We are treating this with urgency and will provide
you with a response as soon as we are able. We regret this oversight and
any inconvenience or frustration it may have caused. Thank you for your
patience while we work to remedy this.
 
Kind regards,
 
 
 Office of Hon Todd McClay 
 
  MP for Rotorua 
  Minister of Agriculture 
  Minister of Forestry 
  Minister for Trade and Investment 
  Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs 
 
 
 
  Email: [email address]    Website: [1]www.Beehive,govt.nz  
  Private Bag 18041, Parliament Buildings, Wellington 6160, New Zealand 
 
Disclaimer: The information in this email (including attachments) is
confidential and may be legally privileged. If an addressing or
transmission error has misdirected this email, please notify the author by
replying to this email and destroy the message. If you are not the
intended recipient, any use, disclosure, copying or distribution is
prohibited and may be unlawful.
 
Please note information about meetings related to the Ministers’
portfolios will be proactively released (this does not include personal or
constituency matters). For each meeting in scope, the summary would list:
date, time (start and finish), brief description, location, who the
meeting was with, and the portfolio. If you attend a meeting with the
Minister on behalf of an organisation, the name of the organisation will
be released. If you are a senior staff member at an organisation, or meet
with the Minister in your personal capacity, your name may also be
released. The location of the meeting will be released, unless it is a
private residence. The proactive release will be consistent with the
provisions in the Official Information Act, including privacy
considerations. Under the Privacy Act 1993 you have the right to ask for a
copy of any personal information we hold about you, and to ask for it to
be corrected if you think it is wrong. If you’d like to ask for a copy of
your information, or to have it corrected, or are concerned about the
release of your information in the meeting disclosure, please contact the
sender. You can read more about the proactive release policy at
[2]https://www.dia.govt.nz/Proactive-Releas...
 
 
 
 
 
 

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