Bwdon seeks probe into ‘scheme abuse’

Press, 23 May 1988, Page 1

Bwdon seeks probe into ‘scheme abuse’

An inquiry by the AuditorGeneral into abuses of the electorate office scheme is being sought by the Opposition member of Parliament for Fendalton, Mr Philip Burdon. “It is obvious that some Government members have been involved in a self-indulgent abuse of the system,” said Mr Burdon, who asserted he would place evidence of “serious abuses” before the Auditor-General. His statement came after the publication of a report in the “Sunday Star” in Auckland that electorate offices of both Government and National members of Parliament were becoming a big drain on public money. Mr Burdon said, “I am calling for a full-scale inquiry into the situation, but at this stage I would prefer not to name the individuals involved , until I have informed the Auditor-General. “There have clearly been

abuses of the system which taxpayers will see as grossly offensive actions by a Government which has demanded economic restraint.”

The newspaper said it had conducted an investigation into 96 electorate offices set up since 1984 and found they were “rapidly becoming a gravy train of public money for the Labour and National parties.” Members of Parliament were entitled to to an electorate office, an electorate secretary to run the office, and expenses, but the “Sunday Star” said it had found “widespread evidence of rules being ignored or abused ...” It said it had found:

© Party work being done openly in electorate offices, including the typing of party minutes, maintenance of membership records and the production of political speeches for members of Parliament.

® Cases where the building used for an electorate office were owned by the political party and rent charged to the public purse. “Examples are the $15,000 the National Party gets for the use of its Invercargill office, the $4455 paid to the Labour Party for its Papatoetoe office in Auckland, and the $7500 paid to the same party for its St Albans office in Christchurch.”

The paper also said that the electorate secretary of the Minister of Transport, Mr Jeffries, worked from his Hutt Valley home and that she minded the children while the Minister and his wife were overseas.

However, it quoted Mr Jeffries as saying the arrangement for her to mind his children when he was overseas was “within the rules” for electorate offices and that he had been told so by the Parliamentary Service general manager, Mr Peter Brooks.