Summarised by Centrist
Political scientist Dr Bryce Edwards argues New Zealand’s rules on political donations and conflicts of interest are no longer fit for purpose, especially when large donations coincide with government decisions on fast-tracked projects.
Writing in his Integrity Briefing, Edwards says recent disclosures show companies linked to fast-track applications gave over $180,000 to governing parties in 2024 alone.
Edwards asks if a lack of safeguards means public decisions are for sale.
Though legal, the lack of formal rules treating party donations as potential conflicts of interest leaves a gap in oversight.
However, Edwards cites University of Otago law professor Andrew Geddis, who cautions against overreach, pointing out that “the unions give lots of money to the Labour Party. If that meant Labour couldn’t pass workplace relations legislation that impacts unions, it would take a huge policy issue out of play.”
Edwards accepts this logic for broad policymaking, but argues it breaks down when applied to fast-tracking, where decisions made by just three ministers can result in direct, substantial benefits for individual donors. In that context, he warns, the current loose rules could allow donations to function as tools for buying influence.
To restore public trust, Edwards proposes a suite of reforms. His top three recommendations:
- Treat major donor links like personal conflicts — Ministers should be required to disclose when their party received donations from someone involved in a decision and consider stepping aside to avoid the perception of bias.
- Real-time donation transparency — Edwards calls for quarterly or real-time donation disclosures and public logs of all ministerial meetings with donors or applicants to close the gap between action and accountability.
- Public disclosure of conflicts and how they’re managed — Edwards says secrecy around ministerial conflicts must end. He wants the Cabinet Manual updated to require not just disclosure of conflicts, but also the steps taken to manage them.
