Statement from Allan And Clarke On AG Report

19th December 2005

Statement from Allan And Clarke On AG Report

The Directors of Allen and Clarke Policy and Regulatory Specialists Limited said today that they were pleased that the Office of the Controller and Auditor-General’s report on its inquiry into the Ministry of Health’s contracting with Allen & Clarke had been completed.

Matthew Allen and David Clarke said “We are particularly pleased that the report confirmed what was obvious all along: that contracts had not been awarded for any other reason than the excellent quality of our work and the fact that we have a proven track history of working for the public sector.”

They pointed to a conclusion in the report of the Office of the Auditor General which stated:

“We found no evidence in the Ministry’s award of contracts to Allen & Clarke of any inappropriate relationships between the principals of the company and staff of the Ministry. Contracts were generally awarded to Allen & Clarke because of the principals’ experience in the specific areas of policy and regulatory advice, the principals’ and their company’s reputation for good performance, and their availability. Ministry officials spoke highly of the performance and quality of the services provided by Allen & Clarke”.

The Directors said that while they were satisfied at this conclusion, and had not expected any other outcome, the inquiry had been distressing to them and to their staff.

“While our clients know and respect Allen & Clarke for our integrity and hard work, we are conscious that even unsubstantiated allegations of inappropriate relationships can be harmful to personal reputations and future business prospects, so we are pleased the matter is now over”.

About Allen & Clarke

What we do: Allen & Clarke is a consultancy firm providing research, policy and regulatory development services to New Zealand departments, international agencies (eg World Health Organization, Secretariat of the Pacific Community, Commonwealth Secretariat) and other governments (for example in the Pacific and Asia). This work relates to policy and regulatory development across all sectors, including but not restricted to the health and social policy sectors.

How we do it: We are an evidence-based consultancy, with a strong reputation domestically and internationally for objective analysis. Accordingly, we are often contracted by agencies wanting assistance with short-term staffing capacity issues, or to undertake independent reviews of agencies, programmes or legislation.

Who works for Allen & Clarke? Allen & Clarke is a medium sized consultancy, with 13 permanent staff from a range of sectors. We also have a large number of Associates and partner agencies who provide services to clients under contract to, or in partnerships with, Allen & Clarke.

ENDS

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