iSAYSO
Official Information Act request relating to the allocation of $15 million for Ukraine defence
64 4 817 9698 www.dpmc.govt.nz
14 April 2026
Ref: OIA–2025/26–0619
Tracy Lynch
[email protected]g
Tēnā koe Tracy,
Official Information Act request relating to the allocation of $15 million for Ukraine
defence
Thank you for your Official Information Act 1982 (the Act) request, which was received by the
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) on 27 March 2026. As noted in our
letter to you of 10 April 2026, you also sent the same request to the Cabinet Office, which is
a business unit within DPMC, on 31 March 2026. Your request was also sent to the New
Zealand Defence Force (NZDF). You requested:
“Subject: Official Information Act Request – $15 Million Ukraine Allocation
1. Introduction
I request information under the Official Information Act 1982 relating to the
Government decision to allocate approximately $15 million towards weapons and
equipment for Ukraine, as publicly reported on or about 2 February 2026.
This request follows a Treasury response (Ref: 20260069, dated 27 March
2026), which confirmed funding sources but advised that no further information
was held.
2. Information Requested
Please provide:
(a) Cabinet and Ministerial Material
– Cabinet papers, Cabinet minutes, briefings, and aide–mémoires
– Ministerial briefings and decision documents
(b) Funding and Fiscal Treatment
– Details of how the $15m allocation was approved and structured
– Any baseline adjustments, reprioritisation, or internal funding decisions
– Any consultation with Treasury regarding fiscal treatment
(c) Accounting Classification
– The accounting treatment applied (expense, capital, transfer, etc.)
– Whether the expenditure is departmental or non–departmental
(d) Inter–Agency Consultation
– Communications (including emails and notes) between your agency and:
– Treasury
– Other relevant agencies
– Ministers or their offices
(e) Impact Analysis
– Any analysis of impacts on:
– Defence capability
– Foreign aid budgets
5150195 2
– Other Votes or domestic expenditure
3. Format
Please provide the information in electronic form.
4. Statutory Rights
I note my right to seek a review by the Ombudsman under section 28(3) of the
Act.
OPTIONAL ADD–ON (Include if desired)
Given the public interest in transparency around international military assistance and
fiscal decision–making, I request that consideration be given to proactive release
where possible.
OPTIONAL ESCALATION CLAUSE
If any part of this request is refused, please:
– Specify the statutory basis for refusal
– Identify whether any information has been withheld rather than not held
– Confirm whether any part of the request has been considered for transfer under
section 14
OPTIONAL URGENCY REQUEST
I request that this matter be treated as urgent under section 12(3) of the Act, on the
basis that it concerns significant public expenditure and ongoing public interest.”
Transfers of your request to MFAT and the Treasury
On 10 April 2026, we notified you of our decision to partially transfer your request to the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) and The Treasury for any relevant information
held by those agencies. We also advised that, as you had made a similar request directly to
the Minister of Foreign Affairs for the information relevant to Part 2(a), we would be referring
you to the forthcoming response from that Minister with respect to any information in scope
of this part of your request.
The present reply covers the remainder of your request for any additional information held by
DPMC – that is, information that would not be covered by the responses from MFAT, the
Treasury, NZDF, or the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Information to be withheld
The only additional information we have identified as in scope of your request consists of
some briefings provided by DPMC’s Policy Advisory Group to the Prime Minister. These
briefings are provided to the Prime Minister in confidence to support him in his role as leader
of the Government and chair of Cabinet. These briefings are withheld in their entirety under
the following sections of the Act:
• 6(a), to protect the security or defence of New Zealand or the international relations of
New Zealand
• 9(2)(f)(iv), to maintain the confidentiality of advice tendered by or to Ministers and
officials
• 9(2)(g)(i), to maintain the effective conduct of public affairs through the free and frank
expression of opinion.