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NZ Government, Wellington
Associate Minister of Commerce, Judith Tizard, and Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector, Rick Barker, today [15/06/2005 ] announced appointments to the inaugural Charities Commission Board and the appointment of Sid Ashton as Chairperson.
The calibre of the selected Charities Commission board members is impressive. Their skills as a group include experience working in the charitable sector both nationally and internationally, governance, senior management, law, accounting, iwi development, public and private sector management, the arts, and church activities," Rick Barker said.
The Charities Act 2005 establishes a new autonomous Crown entity, the Charities Commission, to run a registration, reporting and monitoring system for charities. The Commission will also be responsible for educating and assisting charities in relation to matters of good governance and management.
Board members were appointed following an extensive selection process. Expressions of interest were sought in March 2004 and 378 individuals put their names forward for consideration.
I am very pleased with the outstanding quality of the Charities Commission board applications we received — and the level of interest from the charitable sector, business sector and wider community," said Judith Tizard.
Charities have a vital role to play in society and the Charities Commission will help to enhance public confidence in the work of the charitable sector. By increasing openness and accountability, particularly in the area of fundraising, donors' confidence will increase. This will not only benefit individual charities but also the voluntary sector as a whole, said Rick Barker.
The Charities Commission will commence its operations on 1 July 2005. Responsibility for the Commission will transfer from the Ministry of Economic Development to the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), which reports to Rick Barker as Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector.
Sid Ashton, an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Maori and the Community, has been a Christchurch accountant for over 30 years. Sid Ashton chaired the Tax and Charities Working Party in 2001/2002 and has recently been the Chairperson of the Charities Commission Establishment Group, which advised the Ministry of Economic Development on the establishment of the Charities Commission.
From 1993 to 1996, Mr Ashton was the Chief Executive Officer of the Ngai Tahu Maori Trust Board and then served as the Chief Executive Officer of Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu to 2002. From 2002 until 2004, Sid has been the organisations corporate secretary. Mr Ashton is currently serving as Chairman of the Christchurch Arts Festival Board and as a trustee for the Diabetes Training and Research Trust - both of which are charitable trusts. He is also Director of Ryman Healthcare, a publicly listed company.
Judith Timpany is the Chief Executive of the Whanganui Community Foundation Inc and a Justice of the Peace. She has recently completed her Masters in Philosophy in Social Policy at Massey University.
Her 19 years work experience in the charitable sector has been gained from a broad range of community focussed activities, including three years as a Whanganui City Councillor, Chairmanship of Philanthropy New Zealand, membership of WINGS CF (an International Grant makers body) and as a Director in relation to environmental and infrastructural services on behalf of the Wanganui District Council.
From 2001 2003 she served on both the Tax and Charities Working Party and the Accountability of Charities Working Party. She has commercial expertise having served as a Trustee of the Wanganui Savings Bank and then Trust Bank Central Ltd. From 1993 2004 she was a director of the publicly listed company Powerco Ltd.
Kerry Ayers, a Christchurch based lawyer, is a specialist in trust law. Since 1979 Kerry has practised in the Christchurch law firm Helmore Ayers. He was probably the first lawyer to undertake the New Zealand Institute of Management Executive Staff course in 1996, and is an accredited LEADR (Lawyers Engaged in Alternative Dispute Resolution) mediator.
Over several years, Kerry assisted iwi in the Chatham Islands and was recently appointed Vice President of the New Zealand Law Society. In addition, he has had a long involvement with the Canterbury and New Zealand law societies and is a member of the New Zealand Law Foundation.
Ian Calder, an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to children and the family, has considerable experience in and knowledge of the not-for-profit sector. Ian has been the Chief Executive of Barnardos New Zealand from 1976-2003, the President of the New Zealand Federation of Voluntary Welfare Organisations, Treasurer of the International Forum for Child Welfare, and a member of various government advisory boards including the 1988-89 Working Party on the Taxation of Charities and Sporting Bodies. From 2003 he has been a member of the Social Workers Registration Board.
Frank Claridge, a Justice of the Peace, is an Auckland accountant by training and experience, and has been involved with many not-for profit and charitable organisations in financial management and governance roles throughout his career. From 1984 until July 2003, Frank served as Treasurer for the Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind and is a past Treasurer of the New Zealand Federation of Voluntary Welfare Services.
Frank has also been a member of the Fund Raising Institute of New Zealand's National Ethics Committee, and served on the Tax and Charities Working Party 2001/2 and the Ministry of Economic Developments Charities Commission Establishment Group. He has also had continuous involvement with the governance of the Methodist Church since 1962. Frank is a Fellow of the NZ Trustees Association, and is a member of their National Executive.
Amohaere Houkamau is the Chief Executive of Te Runanga o Ngati Porou, based in Ruatoria, and has played a leading role in developing iwi based service delivery. At the forefront of development in Ngati Porou during the last decade, she has also been actively involved in youth, Maori and Womens issues in the Canterbury region, where she was an inaugural member of the Canterbury Regional Employment Board (REAC). Amohaere has also been a member of the Oringi Kaupapa Trust and the National Youth Council.
Amohaere is a member of the Board of Maori Television. She also co-chairs the Tairawhiti District Taskforce Social Development Forum and is a member of the Lottery National Community Distribution Committee and the Tairawhiti Development Co-ordinating Committee.
Patricia (Pat) Webster is a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for Services to international development and to the community and voluntary sector. A former Executive Director of the Council for International Development she has had particular links with Oxfam and Save the Children New Zealand. She was an executive member of ANGOA (the Association of NonGovernmental Organisations of Aotearoa) and a member of the Steering group on Government and Voluntary Sector Relations from 2001-2003.
Pat was a member of the Accountability of Charities Working Party from 1995-1999 and in 2001-2002 she was a member of the Tax and Charities Working Party. She is from Nelson where she is a member of The Community Workers Training and Support Trust and a community representative on the governance board of the Nelson Bays Primary Health Organisation, which is also a charitable trust.
Hon Judith Tizard
15/06/2005