Source: Taxpayers Union
10 MARCH 2021FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEThe Director-General of Health should have declined his VIP cricket invitation, says the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union. Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says, “Dr Bloomfield would have known perfectly well that his VIP invitation was due to his position, and that he would likely be lobbied. He should have taken steps to avoid any perception of a ‘you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’ situation.” “The safest course of action would have been to decline the invitation, or at least pay for his own ticket. At the very least, Dr Bloomfield should have directed lobbying efforts to the relevant Ministers, who are at least elected officials and are directly accountable to the public.” “Taxpayers who fund the vaccine rollout need confidence that it will be targeted in a way that serves the general public interest. As it stands, Dr Bloomfield has put the Government in a difficult position – they may have good public health reasons to prioritise vaccines for international cricket players, but now if they do that they risk backlash for the conflict of interest.”
