Investigations and reviews help New Zealanders to have trust and confidence in their Public Service.
When something has gone wrong, an investigation provides a transparent way to find out what happened, and for agencies to own, fix and learn from their mistakes.
This page describes how we decide when to investigate.
What is an investigation?
An investigation is a purposeful and structured process. It establishes the facts of a matter and decides what action is needed (if any). When an investigation uses the Commissioner’s powers under the Inquiries Act 2013, we call it an Inquiry.
What we investigate
The Public Service Commissioner investigates matters of integrity and conduct where public trust and confidence are at risk, especially relating to the actions and responsibilities of chief executives and/or systemic matters for the Public Service.
How we decide whether to investigate
We receive many enquiries and concerns about Public Service integrity each year. Not all need investigation. To make the best use of our resources we need to be deliberate about choosing when we will investigate.
When we become aware of a matter that has a risk for public trust and confidence, we make an initial decision using 4 principles. The principles are:
1. The matter sits within our responsibilities
The Public Service Act 2020 sets the boundaries of our responsibilities. It provides the Commissioner their mandate and jurisdiction for investigations.
We normally expect the agency, or its chief executive or board chair, to have an opportunity to respond to an integrity question or problem before it is sent to us. If not, we will normally advise that they should have a chance to respond first.
If we don’t think the matter falls within our responsibilities, we may suggest other places to go for advice or to make a complaint.
2. The significance of the matter warrants investigation
We will assess how significant the public risk, harm and/or impact of the matter is. We will consider:
- When the matter started and what has happened since
- How many and which agencies and public servants are involved
- Whether it’s part of a broader pattern of behaviour
- Whether it’s of high public or ministerial interest, and
- The implications for public trust and confidence if the matter is not addressed.
3. We are best placed to investigate
Our responsibilities for investigating integrity and conduct matters sometimes overlap with other agencies. To decide whether we will investigate when there’s a potential overlap, we will consider:
- Whether the matter must be referred to another agency, e.g. to Police for suspected criminal behaviour
- Who else is already investigating the matter, or could investigate the matter or parts of it, and
- Whether we (or anyone else who could investigate) have any conflicts of interest.
If we might overlap with other agencies, we may discuss it with them, or suggest other places to go for advice or to make a complaint.
4. Investigating is the best use of our resources for addressing this matter now
We’re more likely to investigate when an investigation will:
- Provide system benefits for the Public Service or wider public sector, and
- Make best use of our resources considering commitments we have made to other work.
We may make an initial decision not to investigate based on the information we have at the time but review that decision if we receive new information.
We may also make an initial decision to investigate and later decide to stop, if the factors that led to our initial decision to investigate change.
If we do decide to investigate, we will normally announce this. We will also announce an indicative timeline. We do not answer questions from the public or media while the investigation is underway to protect the integrity of the investigation. We publish a report once the investigation is complete.
The Commissioner may undertake the investigation themselves or delegate that task to Commission officials or external leads. The Commissioner may recover actual and reasonable costs of the investigation from the agencies within scope. This is particularly likely when external leads are engaged.
Alternatives to an investigation
If we choose not to investigate, we might still intervene in other ways. We do this to support agencies to improve their performance and to help maintain trust and confidence in the Public Service.
This includes:
- Referring a matter, or parts of it, to somewhere else for investigation or action,
- Monitoring the matter, e.g. seeking further information from the agency after a period of time, or
- Seeking assurance, from the individual or agency that the matter is being addressed.
Resources
Decision guide: Will we investigate?
This decision guide supports us to consider whether the Public Service Commissioner will investigate matters of integrity and conduct.
Investigation initial assessment template
This form captures our analysis when we consider whether the Public Service Commissioner should investigate a matter of integrity and conduct.
