Monday April 21, 2008

Prime Minister Helen Clark says it's possible the State Services Commission will be asked to look into Immigration Service boss Mary-Anne Thompson's involvement in three family members from Kiribati wrongly getting New Zealand residency.

The Labour Department has refused to release a report into the allegations and Immigration Minister Clayton Cosgrove has said it was the department's decision to make and he would not intervene.

Asked to express confidence in Ms Thompson, Miss Clark said it was an employment matter and she had not read the report.

Miss Clark said that as the case had been made public it was possible it could be referred on to the SSC.

"This has been dealt with at chief executive level, it hasn't had ministerial involvement, there was an independent investigation, it presumably established what it believed the facts were; and the facts seemed to be that she assisted with filling in forms and I don't think that was wise at all, but obviously the chief executive has made the decision," she told Newstalk ZB.

"Now that it's in the public arena the minister could well say to the State Services Commission `please have a look at this for me'.

"But you see ministers are in a difficult position because we do not deal with staffing matters."

The Dominion Post revealed last week that Ms Thompson had been investigated for helping three members of her extended family from Kiribati fill in their forms. She signed her name on the forms as having helped them.

The irregularities were discovered in a routine audit in 2007, two years after the applications had been dealt with.

The department has confirmed that residency was never revoked, despite a finding that the three people involved would not have been granted residency if the usual processes had been followed.

An inquiry by former secretary of justice David Oughton led to a staff member being disciplined.

Ms Thompson was counselled by former department chief executive James Buwalda but no further action was taken against her.

At the weekend Mr Cosgrove said he had raised "concerns" about the case when he was told about it last year.

He would not comment further as it was an "operational" matter.

National Party immigration spokesman Lockwood Smith said Mr Cosgrove should order full disclosure of the details.

"For the public to retain confidence in the Immigration Service, the minister should do what he can to open up the files on this case.

"These are serious claims, and Mr Cosgrove can't just dismiss them as an operational matter."

(Source NZPA)