Prime Minister Chris Hipkins spoke to media following a day of cultural and business events in Shanghai.
Hipkins landed in Shanghai this morning on the last leg of his weeklong trade mission to China.
The PM said last night they wrapped up some “very successful” visits in Beijing, government-to-government visits, and from the business delegation.
In Shanghai they were sending a very clear message New Zealand was open for “business and pleasure”.
On “concerns” about the working relationships in Cabinet minister Kiri Allan’s office, Hipkins said he dealt with formal complaints. “There have not been any.”
Support was provided “where it is needed”, he said.
Asked if he was frustrated to be answering these questions while in China, Hipkins said it was the “nature of New Zealand’s open democracy” to have questions put to him wherever he was.
Hipkins said his office was alerted to an OIA request from the National Party released to them “a few weeks ago”. Hipkins said he was not aware of the specifics of that request at the time.
Hipkins said his focus in China had been on promoting government-to-government relations, supporting the business delegation, and promoting New Zealand. “That is where my focus has been.”
He said he had confidence in all his ministers.
He said there had been some allegations raised against a minister “largely based on speculation”.
“That clearly has not changed anything in terms of stability of the Government.”
He spoke to Allan yesterday over the phone “to check if she was all right”.
“My primary concern yesterday was to make sure that she was OK.”
When asked about immigration, Hipkins said a major focus for Immigration NZ was to speed up visa processing, particularly around international students.
A challenge remained around visitor visas. A visa-free waiver was not currently being considered for China.
Tourism Minister Peeni Henare said he had asked Tourism NZ to pivot from domestic back to international now. There was a specific focus across Asia in the past “and that hasn’t changed”.
Hipkins paid tribute to Te Matatini kapa haka winners Te Whānau-ā-Apanui that were also on the trip and had been performing around China.
“They have certainly made me proud to be a Kiwi.”
He said he expected “much more” of that would be built into future missions.
Hipkins said his visit would have generated a lot of interest in China about New Zealand.
Domestic concerns have dogged the second half of Hipkins’ trip. On Wednesday, a Stuff story reported “concerns” were raised by the Department of Conservation over a year ago about working relationships with the office of Minister Kiri Allan.
Allan posted to social media, shortly before the story broke, that she had been “struggling with mental health and wellness” and had taken mental health leave. She returned to work on Thursday. Allan said no formal complaint was ever raised.
Yesterday, the Department of Conservation confirmed it had raised “concerns” about the working relationships in Allan’s office more than a year ago and one staffer had left her office early as a result.
Asked about the specific DoC concerns, Allan said: “I don’t have any further details on that than you do. I don’t understand what those allegations are.”
She did not wish to talk about any particular staffer, adding that the turnover in her office was “very comparable to any other office in this building”.
Hipkins received something of a reprieve from his other under-fire minister, Education Minister Jan Tinetti. She had been before the Privileges Committee for failing to correct an incorrect statement she made to Parliament as soon as she became aware of the mistake.
The Committee found she had misled the House, and that she should apologise, but it did not find her in contempt of Parliament.
The timing was unfortunate for Hipkins, evoking memories of Meka Whaitiri’s implosion, which also occurred while he was overseas. After the political hustling in Beijing, where he met the top three members of the Chines leadership, he was probably hoping to enjoy a less high-stakes day in Shanghai, selling New Zealand to Chinese travel influencers.
Instead, Hipkins has had to keep an eye on the steady stream of coverage from home and the unfolding drama around Allan.
In Shanghai, he has been working to drum up business, particularly tourism.
He saw the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Tourism NZ and the Red social media platform, with the intention of boosting New Zealand’s presence on Chinese social media.
Hipkins began the day at the Baoshan Museum in Shanghai, which hosts the enormous Te Waharoa taonga made of 3500-year-old kauri wood and gifted to China in 2010.
Hipkins and his travelling delegation, including the Te Matatini champions, Te Kapa Haka o Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, acknowledged the museum for its guardianship of the taonga.
His last big political engagement on the trip will take place this evening, New Zealand time, when he meets with Party Secretary Chen Jining, a high-ranking municipal leader in Shanghai.