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Police say that in June last year they began investigating allegations of the misuse of Census 2023 data and Covid-19 vaccination information at Manurewa Marae in south Auckland.
At the same time, at the request of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and the Minister for the Public Service, the Public Service Commission (PSC) convened a wider Government response to the reported concerns, leading to a series of agency inquiries and investigations.
Police can now confirm they’ve found insufficient evidence to establish criminal culpability for corruption in relation to the Manurewa Marae matter.
The matter has also been reviewed by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) after police in April referred their investigation file for an independent assessment under the SFO’s mandate.
Following a detailed review, the SFO concurs with police findings there are insufficient grounds to initiate a criminal investigation into serious or complex fraud, including corruption offences.
Other potential offences that fall outside the SFO’s remit will continue to be handled by police through normal processes.
Police commenced an investigation in June last year into a range of potential offences and focused primarily on the allegation personal census information had been inappropriately used for political campaigning.
Police engaged with the Electoral Commission on potential electoral law breaches, and in April referred its investigation file to the SFO for independent assessment.
The SFO is engaging with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC), which is carrying out an ongoing inquiry into potential privacy breaches.
The SFO will also continue to work closely with police and other agencies to ensure that serious or complex fraud, including corruption, is exposed and dealt with wherever it occurs.
The PSC’s inquiry found agencies failed to implement safeguards and rules for ensuring personal information was protected.
A comprehensive work programme has been put in place to address the findings.
