Phil Twyford was interviewed on Q+A last night. Oddly Twyford said he couldn’t comment on reports that the KiwiBuild chief executive Stephen Barclay left the job last month – see KiwiBuild problems building up more than houses – saying “I can’t comment on anything to do with an individual public servant, that would be completely inappropriate” but did concede that Barclay is not working at KiwiBuild: ” I know that he’s not at work, um but it’s literally not my job to know”
Corin Dann: I wonder if you can clarify and clear up this business with the CEO of KiwiBuild, Stephen Barclay – reports over the weekend that he has left the job. Has he left the job?
Phil Twyford: I can’t comment on anything to do with an individual public servant, that would be completely inappropriate.
Corin Dann: Where the minister of a two billion dollar investment here for the public, I would have thought that’s in the public interest for you to comment on that isn’t it?
Phil Twyford: So I don’t hire the public servants, I don’t manage them, I just get their advice.
Corin Dann: Do you know why he’s left the job..?
Phil Twyford: No, and I haven’t been advised on that, and it would be really inappropriate for me to comment…
Corin Dann: You don’t know why the CEO of KiwiBuild has not been in the job since November.
Phil Twyford: Mmm. I know that he’s not at work, um but it’s literally not my job to know, and there are other people who deal with that, and they are, and I’m focussing on trying to get houses built.
Corin Dann: Has he actually resigned?
Phil Twyford: Corin, I can’t comment on this…It’s a matter relating to an individual public servant, and I simply cannot comment on it.
Corin Dann: Do you have confidence in him?
Phil Twyford: Corin, I can’t comment on this. It’s a matter that relates to an individual public servant.
And it went on, with Twyford repeating his ‘individual public servant’ and ‘inappropriate to comment’ lines. This seems remarkable that Twyford won’t say if the CEO of KiwiBuild has resigned or is working or not.
Twyford must know something about it, but is resolutely refusing to comment on it.
He did comment on the appointment of Barclay – “Great to have someone of Stephen’s calibre leading the Kiwibuild team.”
Your NZ 
Ray
/ 10th December 2018There just so many Ministers in the race to win
“least effective Minister ” title in this bunch of mugs.
Treuddyn Ted
/ 10th December 2018Most transparent government ever.
Most useless and inept government ever.
-D
/ 10th December 2018Incredible.
Such a total Dork in charge of so much of our money.
Gezza
/ 10th December 2018Hard to argue with that. Phil is the most juvenile of the lot in Parliament. While I don’t wish to seem ungenerous in spirit, he genuinely appears to be as thick as 12 short planks. I would shudder to think of having to work under and report to this clown. A classic Noddy. It appears.
Kitty Catkin
/ 10th December 2018Insult to poor Noddy.
Pete George
/ 10th December 2018alloytoo
/ 10th December 2018When I think of this government I find I automatically need to remove “Responsibility” and “accountability” from my thoughts.
Kitty Catkin
/ 10th December 2018Well, I don’t know…they are spending almost $1,000,000 to tell us not to be litterbugs.
Er….
duperez
/ 10th December 2018It’s pretty clear a government should have nothing to do with housing. Let ‘The Market’ take care of it. All the peripheral issues around it too.
Ray
/ 10th December 2018I don’t agree duperez, if the Government tipped serious money into State Housing as they did in the 30s then the problem should be solved
But it is worth remembering that NZ was on the point of defaulting because if their spending to get out of the Slump and it was only WW2 that saved theirs and our bacon.
Thing is a lot of the “homeless” may not want to live out in the boondocks in a basic house.
Blazer
/ 10th December 2018the banks caused that depression…as usual.
The Consultant
/ 10th December 2018if the Government tipped serious money into State Housing as they did in the 30s then the problem should be solved
It’s interesting that even a Rightie like me long accepted that story, but when people look back at the numbers it starts to look like a myth, Did state houses make much difference to housing supply?:
Ray
/ 10th December 2018Fair enough, though that shows persons/occupied building, my understanding is that a lot of people were moved out of slums to what for the time were modern housing.
But that is just an impression, probably fostered by the newsreel films of the time which were pure Labour/socialist propaganda.
Alan Wilkinson
/ 10th December 2018Duperez is right though he probably doesn’t believe it. The Government should establish proper property rights (including protection for neighbours) and environmental standards and leave the market to take care of everything else.
Pouring money into a stuffed system is just ridiculous – wasteful, ineffective and making the problems worse.
Kitty Catkin
/ 10th December 2018If people don’t want a basic house in the wopwops, then they needn’t take it, but they can’t whine about being homeless. either.
PDB
/ 10th December 2018Gezza
/ 10th December 2018If he is understood to be in an employment dispute with the government who arrived at this understanding and can the PM confirm it seeing Phil can’t?
Gezza
/ 10th December 2018Ah.
Stuff have confirmed that there is an employment issue between Barclay and the Government with a source who has knowledge of the situation, but wished to remain anonymous.
Stuff has not confirmed whether this issue relates to the switch up of ministries for the KiwiBuild unit.
Housing Minister Phil Twyford’s office have refused to comment on the matter, pointing enquiries towards the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.
Anonymous sure gets around. Spends a lot of time in Washington too, I believe.
PDB
/ 10th December 2018Hard to remember a major govt policy being so badly implemented and managed as Kiwibuild. The PM is hardly around parliament doing her job to answer anything (certainly in the house) – you’d have better luck getting a 6 year old to ask her at her next PR school visit.
duperez
/ 10th December 2018Employment dispute? Maybe Twyford has been yelling at him and getting right out of his tree at him. Seems to be a thing at the moment.
Gezza
/ 10th December 2018Tyford’s more likely to try and goof him or superciliously smirk him into submission. It never works in the Debating Chamber, but that seems to be the limit of his powers of persuasion.
Gezza
/ 10th December 2018*w