MEDIA RELEASE
Provincial Growth Fund needs more oversight
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
12 NOVEMBER 2018
Shane Jones’ failure to declare dozens of meetings legitimises concerns of the Provincial Growth Fund model, says the
New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union.
Taxpayers’ Union Executive Director Jordan Williams says “There is a perception that the Provincial Growth Fund is
merely a political tool of New Zealand First. Holding shady meetings behind closed doors that aren’t correctly recorded
does nothing but fuel that perception.”
"Ministers should be setting criteria for funding, not meeting with individual applicants and picking and choosing who
gets and doesn’t get the taxpayer funded handouts. Here, a Minister is able to approve funding up to $20 million without
even seeking Cabinet approval. That flies in the face of New Zealand’s tradition of good governmental process and
protections."
ENDS