Statement on Rt. Hon. Winston Peters and MSD

MSD has received a range of media queries relating to reports about the payment of superannuation to the Rt. Hon. Winston Peters.

MSD can advise that the Chief Executive was first made aware of this issue as part of a routine briefing on operational matters, on 19 June.

The Chief Executive was further advised on 27 July that the matter had been resolved to officials' satisfaction.

The Chief Executive discussed with the State Services Commission (SSC) whether this matter needed to be disclosed to his Minister, under the ‘no surprises policy’. The SSC provided advice that this should be disclosed to the Minister of Social Development under the 'no surprises' policy.

On 31 July, at a one-on-one meeting between the Minister of Social Development, Hon Anne Tolley and the Chief Executive, he verbally briefed the Minister on the matter, under the ‘no surprises’ policy, and followed up with a written note on 15 August.

MSD takes the protection of client’s data seriously, and is conducting an investigation to ensure no personal information was leaked by MSD staff.