Former National President Michelle Boag is relinquishing her membership of the party and resigning as a Trustee of the Simplicity Charitable Trust, admitting to leaking more Covid-19 patient information for political purposes.
She said in a statement that towards the end of June she sent several emails to National’s health spokesperson, Michael Woodhouse, “comprising notification of a small number of then new Covid-19 cases”.
Woodhouse confirmed this, saying that between June 21 and 25 he received four unsolicited emails from Boag containing patient details.
A National spokesperson told interest.co.nz Woodhouse told National Leader Todd Muller of these emails on Tuesday night.
However neither Muller nor Woodhouse admitted to this, with Muller saying he hadn't sought assurances from other MPs around whether they'd received private information from Boag. He said he was confident the issue was between Boag and National MP Hamish Walker.
Woodhouse explained: “Michelle told me she received this information through her role with the Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust and I was led to believe it was circulating among a number of other health agencies.
“I recognised that the information in those emails was private so I did not share it with anyone else and I subsequently deleted them.
"I can confirm that Michelle Boag is not the source of any previous information released by me in relation to the Government’s Covid-19 response."
Both Woodhouse and Boag said they would cooperate with Michael Heron QC, appointed by the State Services Commission to do an investigation following patient details being leaked to media.
After the investigation was announced on Monday, Boag confessed she leaked the information to Walker, who sent it to media – reportedly to try to justify a seemingly racist claim he made about overseas returnees. Walker resigned on Tuesday, after Muller said he wanted him gone.
It is still unclear how and why Boag received the information.
She said she received it from the Ministry of Health in her capacity as the Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust acting CEO (which she has since stepped down from), and that it was sent to a private email address.
However, the Trust said Boag never had access to patient information and it doesn’t believe it’s been subject to a privacy breach.
The Ministry won't comment while Heron's investigation is underway.
The investigation is expected to conclude in about two weeks' time.
Simplicity CEO Sam Stubbs said, "Simplicity now has 60 volunteers, and as a foundation Trustee of our charity, Michelle was one of the first.
"She has been a huge supporter, and we wouldn’t be where we are today without her input. Her understanding of the charitable sector has been very useful, and that will be missed.”
Here’s Boag’s statement in full:
The last few days have underscored for me the unhealthy relationship I have developed with politics. For 47 years, I have devoted much of my professional and personal life to supporting the party that for me has always represented the ultimate kiwi values of hard work, reward for effort, self-reliance and compassion. Unfortunately this passion has put me on a self-destructive path. This was confirmed for me as I wrote to Michael Heron QC last night to advise him that towards the end of June I had sent several emails to Michael Woodhouse comprising notification of a small number of then new Covid19 cases. My decisions to share this information were wrong, driven by my distorted view that providing that information would help the National Party to hold the Government to account. In fact it was harmful, not helpful, and it is time that the National Party and I parted ways.
Since joining the National Party at 18, I have tried, sometimes way too hard, to support the Party in any way I could. After resigning as President following the 2002 General Election, I continued to defend and advocate for the Party in many forums, including accepting invitations to provide political commentary. In none of those forums was I the official representative of the National Party, yet media and political opponents saw my comments as “the National Party” and I in turn felt the need to defend any National Party perspective.
My strong sense of obligation to others has manifested itself in extensive work for charities and individuals in need over many years, but in respect of the National Party, my loyalties have severely clouded my judgement. I was always available to defend, to support and to advocate for the Party and its MPs. I have become an unhelpful distraction in the current political environment. I apologise to all those who have been collateral damage in my quest, both inside and outside the Party and I deeply regret my actions.
I hope my resignation will allow the Party to get on with its vital task of setting out its pathway for New Zealand’s future in the upcoming General Election. The governance and direction of New Zealand, its economic stewardship and the wellbeing of all New Zealanders is the most important issue right now.
I am grateful for the many friends I have made through politics and for their recent support for me personally. Right now, my task is to assist the investigation being carried out by Michael Heron QC and face the consequences of my actions.
I will be making no further comment at this time.
126 Comments
There needs to be some criminal prosecutions under privacy act. These politicians and their associated people have become rotten to the core. The Nationalist Party are now a symbol of corruption, deception, arrogance and nastiness. Cant believe i voted for them. Not any more
These people need to be removed from NZX boards, Charities, etc. I do not trust them at all anymore.
Boag will be well aware that she could face prosecution......
No doubt she feels much like Prince Andrew and various others - the whole lot of them fearing a prison sentence......
Of course, this is not the first time that Boag has fallen from grace.
Michelle Boag is as hard as hell. The softest part of Boag is her teeth.
TTP
Hang on. Between 21 & 25 June Woodhouse received unsolicited emails with CV19 patient details. RNZ web 6 July 5.37am Wood house is saying “unconscionable and unacceptable ............ private details being leaked.” Was he incapable of joining the dots that it might be something to do with those June emails? Somebody help me. I must be missing something surely.
Just like the time (as Veteran's Affairs Minister) he saw his surname on a cenotaph in Turkey and decided to claim the fallen soldier was his great uncle.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/10065941/Minister-apologises-f…
What targeted areas? Don't be silly, especially when it comes to personal freedoms, conservatives cling to their bibles while liberals embrace most aspects of it. Only things economic can co-habit, such as they do in just about all political parties that exist, but issues of personal freedoms, nope, opposites do not coalesce there.
Crime for one. Both Conservatives and Liberals agree that harmful behaviours are to be discouraged and punished. Provided your personal freedoms don't harm someone else's, I think both sides would be satisfied. The problem with political genres is they stereotype and segregate ideas aka tribalism. Just like your Bible comment
Well, that does NOT describe conservatives, the New Conservatives are what conservatives are, Conservatives are NOT libertarian at all. They even have a policy of placing solo mothers into homes of married people, THAT is conservatism, the ugliest of all political leanings IMHO, they have zero interest in staying out of the private lives of others. ACT was founded as a libertarian party. A former leader, Rodney Hide, self describes as an anarchist. What he stood/stands for is what ACT was founded on.
This might be surprising to you, but conservatives and liberals actually agree on certain things. The right to bear arms, fiscal responsibility, low taxation for example. Act is certainly more liberal than conservative, but then you're not going to National if you want conservative now either, are you?
Have you asked Raymond Huo?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/116715353/labour-mp-raymond-h…
I don't disagree with him, but if you're going to panic about reds under the bed then at least be consistent about it.
This from an ex party president? What do National even stand for in 2020? They are so irrelevant it's almost certain Labour and the Greens will be able to form a government alone. Muller is not the guy to pull them out of this mess, they need someone with charisma and empathy.
I saw some reporting suggesting that the MOH was routinely emailing the helicopter trust (and others?) about COVID-19 positive patients, incase they needed to fly them anywhere. This was understandable during level 3 and 4 lockdown, but appears the process was still in place, even for these people in quarantine, for which the helicopter trust would have no need to know the information.
So a bit of a stuff-up on the ministry's side there, but Boag obviously took a terrible way to raise that as an issue needing sorting.
Important tidbit from the Herald not included in Interests' write up above. Editing for context is mine:
[Woodhouse's] confession follows National Party leader Todd Muller's comments yesterday that he had not asked his MPs whether they had received confidential information as Walker had.
"The issue is sorted from my perspective," [Muller] told reporters yesterday.
But a party spokeswoman told the Herald that Muller knew about Boag's emails to Woodhouse on Tuesday.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12347017
So on Tuesday Muller knew Boag had leaked to another MP and as recently as Thursday was suggesting there was no further information to come about Boag leaking to his MPs.
My god, what a despicable person. At least she had the gumption to admit she was waaaay out of line (well publicly), but that doesn't mean you don't get punished. If this is the measure of public relations expertise in this country, the industry is in serious trouble. And it seems Woodhouse didn't tell Muller about the breach either...
All of this is happening over email too - an insecure communication medium.
No, National hit 60% a couple of times in 2011, and John Key up to 70% in preferred prime minister.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_2011_New_Zealand_…
and John Key up to 70% in preferred prime minister.
Only ever in the "Herald Digipoll" which is no longer run, and each of those times it was 10-15 points higher than the other polls. Clearly a biased poll, either in their sampling, their processing, or perhaps simply how they worded the question (eg they may have forced people to select an answer from their list of names).
"Muller earlier in the week said he had not sought assurance from other MPs, including Woodhouse, around whether they'd received private information from Boag. He was confident the issue was between Boag and Walker."
So either Woodhouse lied to Muller, or Muller knew Woodhouse had received emails from Boag ?
Much is being read into Woodhouses response or lack thereof to receiving this email. But as someone likely dealing with hundreds of emails every day he more than likely thought 'so what' and deleted it. That Boag had to resort to a low level country bumpkin like Walker as a vehicle for her power and control urges suggests she was not getting responses from more senior MPs.
Yep. Annoying mosquito simply swatted away and not discussed with anyone or did he chat with those higher up?. If the latter and they did not alert MOH to the breach then Muller has some explaining to do. Either way it is reasonable to infer from Boag going to a lower level dupe that she got no bites from Woodhouse. Unless there's a deeper conspiracy but against that why would you choose someone like walker as your front of stage. All very intriguing.
The unreasonable demands of public office.
i.e. Talking to your constituents.
In all reality, however, it wasn't a National Party decision. Especially after they just promoted him up the list.
In my opinion he is (was) likely quite an important fixer for the party.
It's been a slow change but I'd look back and salute Nicky Hagar for standing up and getting everything from personal abuse to use of the police in harassing him leading to this sort of behavior being a political negative rather than positive.
I was going to write some dripping sarcasm but really he just deserves acknowledgement.
Current National MPs and people like Boag are misreading the public mood atrociously.
This is Nationals dirty politics tactics from Key and Crusher's era with Whaleoil firing the smears.
Boag seems to have stepped in to help with no Whaleoil on the scene.
Muller is too scared of his MPs to change the toxic culture.
Labour with 3rd term Clark had it's moments.
Of course, this is not the first time that Boag has been publicly associated with issues relating to a leak of personal information.
She became involved in the 2012 ACC privacy breach when it was revealed that she had acted as support person to the woman holding the leaked ACC information. The fallout was that it was found that ACC was lacking in protection of personal information – that which appears to be at the heart of this leak.
I would have thought that from experience Boag was well aware of the issues regarding security of sensitive personal information and need for organisations to have processes to protect such information.
As to her comment today "it is time that the National Party and I parted ways", from memory, at the time of the 2012 issue it was reported that Boag claimed that she was severing ties with the National Party.
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