Scooped!

So, I post a big OIA story, and then discover I've been scooped by NewstalkZB. That'll teach me to leave things till Monday. As for the substance, they've missed the lying to Cabinet and the fact that Mapp was nominated by Collins, but they've got the core problem:

Papers released under the Official Information Act show six other names were put forward for the role last September.

However Justice Minister Judith Collins decided not to check their availability when making the final decision in January, and put Dr Mapp forward as the only candidate.

Appointments to positions like this are supposed to be on merit and made by a contestable process. Collins' shoulder-tapping cronyism was the very opposite of that.

As for accountability, Collins of course is refusing to answer questions from journalists, pretending that its about the appointee rather than her own lack of process. But while she can dodge the media, she can't dodge questions in the House. The only question is whether someone wants to grill her over it.