More ructions ahead for immigration staff

By HELEN TUNNAH deputy political editor

Prime Minister Helen Clark expects the embattled Immigration Service will face new criticism this week with the release of an Ombudsman's report into whether its staff deliberately tried to keep sensitive documents from him.

Ombudsman Mel Smith yesterday confirmed "affected" parties had been sent his report into the row over a memo in which an immigration official said staff had agreed to "lie in unison" about then suspected terrorist Ahmed Zaoui.

The service initially said the memo did not exist, even though the Ombudsman had asked for it after an Official Information Act request by the National Party.

Mr Smith's report is due out this week, but Helen Clark said yesterday she had not seen it or been briefed on its contents.

It is expected to hold more bad news for the Immigration Service, which is already under investigation over the deportation of a Sri Lankan girl who failed in her bid for asylum despite claiming she was fleeing relatives who had sexually abused her.

The removal of the girl, who has name suppression, has already cost Lianne Dalziel her job as Immigration Minister, after she released a document to the media and then lied about it.

A State Services Commission inquiry, expected to be headed by a lawyer - possibly a QC - will investigate how Ms Dalziel got the document, which the lawyer for the girl claims contained confidential and privileged legal advice.

Ms Dalziel, a trained lawyer, has said both that the document came to her from the lawyer Carole Curtis - through Helen Clark's electorate office - and from a lobby group.

National MP Judith Collins says telephone logs show Ms Curtis could not have faxed the documents to the electorate office on the days claimed.

Helen Clark will today ask her caucus to approve a Cabinet replacement for Ms Dalziel, which could also see a slight reshuffling of portfolio responsibilities.

The Prime Minister said yesterday that Ms Dalziel's changed version of events justified the inquiry into the release of the document. "A number of different things were said and people want to know what actually happened." Helen Clark said the SSC inquiry would have the powers of a commission of inquiry "and will get to the truth of the matter".

She said she did not have any intention of getting involved.

The Ombudsman has been inquiring into why the "lie in unison" memo, which on the surface suggested collusion by Immigration Service officials to lie about Mr Zaoui's arrest and detention, was not handed to him as required by law.

The Department of Labour last year conducted its own, heavily criticised, internal inquiry into the Immigration Service and cleared staff of deliberate wrong-doing, blaming procedures instead.

One staff member, communications manager Ian Smith, is still facing disciplinary procedures for writing the memo.

No one was reprimanded for the failure to hand it to the Ombudsman, even though it went to 300 people including the head of the Service Andrew Lockhart.

Helen Clark said yesterday that the department's internal report into the row had been "critical" so "the Ombudsman's one is also likely to be critical".

Ms Dalziel and Labour Minister Margaret Wilson defended the Department of Labour's report when it was released.

But Mel Smith, who had been due to release his report about the same time, announced that he was extending his inquiry.

Immigration inquiry

A QC is expected to head an independent inquiry into how a letter about a Sri Lankan girl got into Government hands.

The inquiry is likely to focus on how former Immigration Minister Lianne Dalziel got the letter, which she leaked to the media and then lied about it and had to resign last Friday.