Three new Directors, Anne Tolley, Dr Gillian Greer, and Peter Kelly were elected to the TINZ Board following online and ‘at the AGM’ voting.
In addition, three incumbent Directors were re-elected: Brendon Wilson, Karen Coutts and Tod Cooper. John Hopkins did not stand for re-election, and Suzanne Snively’s term as Director/Chair came to an end in line with TINZ’s rules.
We thank all election candidates for offering their support to TINZ including Adam Hunt who will continue as a Member with Delegated Authority. We are also very grateful to Jane Mitson, Returning Officer, who managed a very sound election process.
The TINZ Board will meet later in January 2021 to elect a new Chair from amongst the Board members.
Anne Tolley
Anne Tolley has served 34 years in politics, first from 1986 as a local government councillor and deputy mayor between 1989 and 1995. She became a member of the national government of New Zealand in 1999, and remained a Member of Parliament until her retirement in 2020. During her Parliamentary career she was Minister of Education, Minister for Children, Minister of Social Development, Minister of Corrections, Minister of Police and Minister of Local Government.
Anne was appointed Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives in November 2017. In this role, she chaired a cross-party steering group to develop a parliamentary code of conduct. She also re-instigated and chaired the New Zealand chapter of the Global Organisation of Parliamentarians against Corruption (GOPAC), a cross party Parliamentarians group working with TINZ to effect changes in public sector practices. She was New Zealand’s permanent delegate to the International Parliamentary Union (IPU), served 3 years as the 2nd Vice President of their Women’s Bureau and Gender Equality Committee working with many Parliaments to address their lack of women’s representation. She brings a wide knowledge of Parliamentary systems and practices, in New Zealand and abroad.
Anne was elected to the TINZ Board in November 2020. She is keen to contribute to the ongoing work of TINZ. “It is critically important that public and private activities under COVID-19 circumstances are transparent and open to scrutiny, that Governments show leadership in Open Government practices, and that public and private entities develop systems to prevent widespread abuse of funding.”
Gillian Greer CBE,MNZM, PhD
Gillian has held a number of governance and leadership positions that provide a background for her contribution to the TINZ Board. These include Assistant Vice Chancellor of Victoria University (Equity and Human Resources) and membership of the university’s Council; Director General of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, working across 160 countries in education, health services and human rights advocacy; CE roles atthe National Council of Women, Volunteer Service Abroad and Rare Disorders NZ.
She is a member of the Institute of Directors and has served in governance and advisory positions. These include the advisory committee to Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and as the chair of the Asia Pacific Alliance, the Ministry of Health NGO Forum, and alliances linked to the UN-like Volunteer Groups Alliance. As the Chief Executive of VSA she gained greater understanding of the importance of cross country partnerships and the Pacific. Gillian has worked collaboratively with NGOs and the public and private sectors. She is a Board member of Evofem Biosciences. Gillian co-wrote the “People’s Report “ on the Sustainable Development Goals, in 2019.
Gillian comments on governance “Good governance is incredibly important. It is one of the four main priorities chosen by a million participants in the 2013 survey, The World We Want, as part of deciding the Sustainable Development Goals. Good governance is critical for human rights, transparency, cross sectoral collaboration, and for collective, individual and intergenerational well being.”
Peter Kelly
Peter is currently Chief Executive of Upper Hutt City Council.
His main career was in defence, latterly as Head of the New Zealand Army. His public sector experience has taught him the importance of leading an organisation where integrity and transparency are central to its culture.
Peter’s intent is to support TINZ in its kaupapa by working collaboratively with the Board and all members, by applying his leadership skills and drawing on his knowledge and experience in defence, security and local government. This in turn will enable him to grow his own understanding and apply the insights and learnings directly back into the local government sector, which touches the lives of all New Zealanders. He draws on a whakataukī (proverb) from his iwi Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Upane, ka upane whiti te ra – advancing together into a brighter future.
