KATE NEWTON
The email trail came back to bite those at the centre of the conflict of interest scandal at Hawke's Bay District Health Board (HBDHB) yesterday.
In Parliament, National health spokesman Tony Ryall tabled an email that shows the health board's chief executive Chris Clarke was talking with Peter Hausmann, the
managing director of Healthcare NZ, about a $50 million contract at the same time the former Health Minister was fast-tracking Hausmann's appointment to the HBDHB. The email, dated May 10 2005, was sent from Mr Clarke's executive assistant, Kathy Shanaghan, to Ashton Kirk, a senior manager at the DHB, and read: "Chris has asked if you could send Peter Hausmann a copy of the RFP for community services - pointing out that it is confidential."
Mr Ryall asked Health Minister Pete Hodgson why Mr Clarke would be sending a commercially sensitive document to a bidder 2 1/2 months before the tender was publicly notified.
Mr Hodgson said the email was old and had been included in an earlier internal inquiry by the DHB which had found no wrong-doing.
He was confident a wider inquiry would come to the same conclusion and would also find out if a woman lost her job because she blew the whistle.
The DHB's chairman Kevin Atkinson said it would be inappropriate for the board to comment on its chief executive.
Also revealed in Parliament yesterday was news that the man who was to lead the Government's inquiry into the allegations, Syd Bradley, had pulled out of the job, much to the Opposition's amusement.
National deputy leader Bill English had previously criticised Mr Bradley as a "Labour appointee", saying he should not have been heading the inquiry because he owed his job at the DHB to the Government.
To cries of laughter and disbelief from National's ranks, Mr Hodgson said Mr Bradley had stood aside because of changing personal circumstances - overseas travel.
"Even one of the Government's favourites can smell the stench of cronyism around this sham inquiry that this Government has set up," Mr Ryall said.
Director-General of Health Stephen McKernan had decided Ian Wilson - who chairs MidCentral DHB - would now lead the review team.
National has argued the Auditor-General should be investigating the allegations at the Hawke's Bay DHB.
