Unauthorised Spending of 'Grave Concern'

Business Development Minister Max Bradford says today's High Court judgement on the suspension of business development grants confirms that it is proper for him to act to prevent boards making grants outside the rules.

"The judgement confirms that the unauthorised spending of public money is a matter of 'grave concern'," Mr Bradford said.

"The Government's concern was always about some boards incurring unauthorised expenditure, and the High Court agrees that I could not just sit on my hands and allow public money to disappear irrecoverably for unauthorised purposes," he said.

"I hope the minority of boards who took this court action (6 of 21 boards) now get behind the policy review of the programme, particularly after our successful meeting in Wellington last week," he said.