Auditor-General checking $18m Budget promo campaign

1.00pm

The auditor-general is looking into aspects of the Government's three-year $18 million campaign to explain its Budget package for families, National MP Murray McCully says.

Mr McCully said he had complained to the office of the auditor-general about the unprecedented scale of the campaign and also brochures and advertising that appeared to have been paid for by the Parliamentary Service and Ministerial Services.

He believed using money allocated through the Parliamentary Service and Ministerial Services for "party political purposes" was wrong.

Mr McCully told NZPA the auditor-general's office had confirmed he would investigate the spending.

Assistant auditor-general Robert Buchanan said in a letter to Mr McCully that staff had cleared written and video material from the Ministry of Social Development in relation to the Government's Working for Families package.

"We have, however, since become aware of other advertising about the programme, that appears to have been funded through Vote Parliamentary Services. We were not asked to review that material."

Mr McCully said in his view the spending, which was over and above the $18 million to explain the package announced on budget day, was completely inappropriate.

Labour had published a brochure "What's in it for me and my family" and also placed advertisements in the Woman's Weekly and some regional newspapers, he said.

The brochure and ads appeared to have been funded out of the Labour leader's budget, he said.

"It is clear that using Parliamentary Service or Ministerial Services money to promote the Labour party is a breach of cabinet guidelines."

Mr McCully said previous government statements that its "explanatory" material had been cleared by the audit office was misleading. It was now clear the Government had not made the audit office aware of all its planned promotions.

Mr McCully said he had also complained about the "quantum" of the massive campaign, which was unprecedented and in his view inappropriate.

"This is wildly out of proportion to the need which a government could have to legitimately communicate the changes to entitlement and is out of proportion to all previous campaigns," he said.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Helen Clark confirmed that some advertising had been paid for out of the Parliamentary Service's Labour leader's budget.

However he said staff in the office were confident the spending was appropriate and did not break any rules.

National had previously used money in their leader's budget for billboard advertising, he said.

"It's all OK...we're confident it's all within the rules."

- NZPA