The Public Service Commissioner has opened a formal investigation into a failed government technology project. The project, called the Biometric Capability Update (BCU), cost $33 million and was meant to modernise how Immigration New Zealand checks people at the border.

The Public Service Commission is investigating after an independent review found that immigration officials allegedly deliberately kept information hidden about the project's problems. The ministry, MBIE, said it supports the investigation. It is also investigating employment-related matters separately.

The independent review, published by MBIE, found two main problems. First, staff were too hopeful about whether the project would work. Second, there were no proper checks and balances while the project was running. The BCU was supposed to upgrade the technology border officers use to identify people and check them against lists of potential risks.

What happened

In November 2023, three senior MBIE officials held an urgent meeting to discuss the project's money problems. Months later, in March 2024, they told government ministers the project was in trouble. The question now is: what did officials tell ministers between those two dates? This gap is what the investigation is looking at.

The core issue is whether officials were honest with their ministers. The Public Service Act says government workers must be truthful with ministers. If the investigation finds they weren't, there could be serious consequences. The Public Service Commissioner has the power to take action against senior officials.

MBIE is investigating its own staff separately. This is normal when a major integrity investigation is underway — it lets the ministry handle its own employment issues while keeping that separate from the main investigation.

Why this matters

Government IT projects sometimes fail. That is not unusual. What stands out here is that MBIE did not have proper systems to catch the problems early. The biometric systems that failed are important — border officers depend on them every day to check who is entering the country.

MBIE has published the full review online. Both the ministry and the Public Service Commission are being open about what happened — though the investigation will determine whether that openness matches what actually occurred.

For the wider public service, this is a reminder that the Public Service Commissioner can investigate serious problems. The Commissioner has not used this power often, so using it here suggests the allegation about hidden information was considered very serious.

The investigation is still ongoing. MBIE has not said when its own inquiry will be finished.