The Herald has asked six more sitting MPs why they own property they haven't declared under Parliament’s rules. Photo / Mark Mitchell.
Six more MPs have failed to declare property under Parliament’s rules, a Herald investigation has found.
This follows the announcement of a Parliamentary inquiry into MP Carl Bates’ 25 undeclared properties.
The Herald has this week asked the six MPs why property records show they own more property than they have declared.
Three of them said they will update their declarations to Parliament, two have sought further advice, and one was unable to be contacted.
It is an important part of Parliamentary rules that MPs declare their business, property, and other legal interests, “providing transparency and confidence in parliamentary processes and decision making”.
Veteran National MP and current Speaker of the House Gerry Brownlee included “Residential property (x2) – Ilam, Christchurch” in his declaration.
Brownlee actually owns a dual-title property in Ilam and a third property on Ilam Rd in Bryndwr.
Brownlee told the Herald he wasn’t trying to hide anything and will update the register as soon as possible.
When he purchased the Ilam property in 2012, he did not realise it was two separate titles, and he had always assumed the Bryndwr property was in Ilam because it was on Ilam Rd, he claimed.
The Herald asked NZ First MP and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Patterson why he hadn’t declared 292 hectares of farmland in Otago.
Patterson said he thought he had been transparent based on advice he’d received at the time of his declaration.
“However, as a result of the advice I have received today, the Office of the Clerk will edit the 2025 return,” he said.
Labour MP for Rangitata Jo Luxton inherited a share in a property in 2022 and has not declared it.
Luxton told the Herald, "This is an oversight, should be declared and will be corrected as soon as possible. It is my stepfather’s property, and my mother’s interest in it was transferred to me after she passed away in 2022. I hadn’t considered the property mine and therefore hadn’t thought to declare it before now“.
The Herald asked Labour MP Damien O’Connor about land owned by a company he had declared an interest in.
O’Connor responded, “The company and its interest in farming has been declared. In my years as an MP I have never been advised to declare this in any other way. However I am more than happy to add that the company owns a working farm which is leased to a family member, and update the register if required.”
Another Labour MP, Ayesha Verrall declared her interest in a property company, but did not declare the actual property owned by the company.
Verrall told the Herald, “I declared the company’s interest in property in my last two pecuniary interest declarations, however the company no longer has an interest in property as it has been sold which means it will not be included next time. I have been guided by Parliamentary Practice in NZ (McGee) 10.4.2 p117 for this declaration.”
Parliament’s Standing Orders state declarations must include “the location of real property in which the member has a legal interest, other than an interest as a trustee, and a description of the nature of the real property”.
When asked if her declaration met this standard, Verrall said, “It hasn’t been raised with me at any point that the declaration of the company’s interest in property was insufficient”.
Verrall told the Herald MP transparency is important and she will update the previous register if required.
Clerk of the House, David Wilson told the Herald, “The Standing Orders are the rules of the House, agreed by its members. If there is a discrepancy between sources, the Standing Orders are the authority.”
O’Connor and Verrall have both sought clarity regarding their declarations.
One MP was unavailable to discuss their property with the Herald.
The Herald analysis is not exhaustive. Not all MPs’ property records could be identified.
Chris Knox is a scientist turned data-journalist who investigates the stories behind the numbers, and creates interactives for Herald readers to explore them.