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On the 20th of May the New Zealand Business Parliament Trust held its second seminar of 2026 at Parliament, with the focus on the machinery of government. The day was a great success, with excellent levels of participation during Q&As and the interactive select committee mock session.
Our guest speakers were, Andy Foster MP discussing the purpose and role of select committees, making a written submission and speaking to a submission.
Helen Lockyer, Principal Advisor, Department of Prime Minister & Cabinet, discussed the role the Govt Department plays in the development and delivery of policy.
Rachel Clarke, Senior Advisor, introduced the makeup and role of the Executive, Cabinet and cabinet committees.
A new focus for us was to feature a Crown Agency which had been requested as part of the participant feedback we run for these seminars. Richard Forgan, Group General Manager System Leadership, NZTA Waka Kotahi, discussed the working relationship between a Crown agency and a Minister, managing political sensitivities and relationships between the business/corporate world and Crown Agencies.
James Picker, Clerk Assistant, Office of the Clerk educated the group about legislation, House and Select Committees and the Budget and Financial cycle.
To finish our seminar day, our group participated in an interactive select committee mock training session and Q&A led by Ben Greig, Manager of Select Committee Services. We were pleased to see such enthusiasm for this session, with a high level of participation from all involved.