Ross
ROBERTSON
Racing Spokesperson
20 February 2013 MEDIA STATEMENT
Racing Minister needs to do some reading
Racing Minister Nathan Guy would be well advised to check the dictionary meaning of ‘independent’ before restarting the
process of appointing a new Racing Board chair, Labour’s Spokesperson for Racing, Ross Robertson, says
In a decision this week the High Court overturned the appointment of Alan Jackson as chairman of the New Zealand Racing Board, finding Mr Guy had overlooked Mr Jackson’s strong and on-going connections
with the thoroughbred code, and had misinterpreted the requirement for an independent chairperson.
“The Minister has completely botched the appointment process, whether deliberately or not. The court has been scathing
of his handling of it and rightly so.
“It is extraordinary that the Minister couldn’t see that Mr Jackson’s industry contacts and involvement with the
thoroughbred code would clearly rule him out as an ‘independent’ chair.
“It was even brought to his attention by the Greyhound Racing Association.
“Nathan Guy needs to explain how he came to his original decision. His handling of the appointment process was
amateurish and incompetent.
“Misinterpreting requirements is one thing; blatantly ignoring conflicts of interests is a whole different matter.”