Pike River inquiries to start immediately, says minister

Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee leaving a meeting in Greymouth. Photo / Getty Images

A series of high-level inquiries will be held into the Pike River mine tragedy as the families of the miners demand answers about the loss of their loved ones.

Prime Minister John Key has indicated a commission of inquiry may be held into the deaths of the 29 miners, while police, the Department of Labour and the coroner will all examine what went wrong.

"There is going to be a range of inquiries that will begin fairly immediately," said Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee.

"And in the long term, of course, everyone will want to know what happened up there. It's pretty essential we find out, and the nature of how we achieve that is yet to be determined."

Asked if there was likely to be changes in the mining industry as a result of those inquiries, Mr Brownlee said: "Every time you have something like this you can learn from, of course you make the changes that come from that learning."

Grey District mayor Tony Kokshoorn, in an interview before yesterday's explosion, told the Herald that he was aware of concerns raised on the West Coast about safety at the Pike River mine.

But Mr Brownlee said he had not been told of any series of concerns relating to that mine by the monitoring agency, the Department of Labour.

The Department of Labour will focus on the Health and Safety in Employment Act; a coronial inquiry is designed to establish the cause and circumstances of death and to make recommendations on how more deaths in similar circumstances can be prevented. It can also determine whether the deaths should be investigated by another authority.

Chief Coroner Judge Neil MacLean has set the ball rolling for his own special inquiry, starting today, after being told that police were satisfied there had been 29 deaths.

He said it was too soon to say whether there would be an inquest.

The inquiry would help families of the dead by drawing together enough evidence to issue interim death certificates on which insurance companies might be prepared to pay out.

"We have to sort out identification issues ... then move towards documentation which families may need to assist with all the bureaucratic stuff institutions require," he said.

Questions which needed to be answered included whether any of the bodies were likely to be recovered.

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson said the terms of reference for a commission of inquiry still had to be worked through.

"We've got to act pretty fast.

"Something has gone drastically wrong - and we need to find out what it is, what happened and we need to do our best to make sure it doesn't happen again.

"The families need answers, and we, as a country, need answers."

POWERS OF A COMMISSION OF INQUIRY

Why would the Government set up a commission of inquiry?

A formal commission of inquiry is the most significant form of inquiry available to a government. Governments usually establish a commission of inquiry following a disaster or accident where there has been significant loss of life or where people might have been exposed to risk of death. Other grounds for such an inquiry include matters where there is considerable public anxiety or where there has been a major lapse in government performance. Examples of well-known commissions of inquiry include the Air New Zealand crash on Mount Erebus, the Cave Creek tragedy and the Winebox papers. Such inquiries are usually chaired by a current or retired judge.The hearings are usually open to the public. The findings are seen to be independent and credible.

What powers does a commission of inquiry have?

By statute, a commission of inquiry has the same legal powers as a court to take evidence under oath and summon witnesses, who enjoy the same immunity as those in a court of law.

Why not a royal commission of inquiry?

Royal commissions these days tend to focus on policy matters, such as the recent one on the creation of an Auckland Super City.