$50,000 golden handshake covered up, says National

Claire Austin

Former Families Commission chief executive Claire Austin was given a $50,000 golden handshake after her resignation in April, says National.

The commission's annual report confirmed that one former employee got "$50,000 compensation on termination of employment".

National's families spokeswoman, Judith Collins, said the $50,000 payment - more than the average annual wage - was the second golden handshake revealed in a week.

The other was resigning TVNZ chief executive Ian Fraser's payment, believed to be $420,000 including superannuation. However the Government disputes it is a golden handshake because he will work out his six months' notice at the broadcaster doing other jobs.

In April, when Ms Austin left after only five months in the job, opposition parties demanded the amount paid to her be disclosed.

Chief commissioner Rajen Prasad said at the time the board's expectations and hers around "governance and operational models" had not lined up.

Ms Collins said last night Labour deliberately sought to bury details of the payout until after the election.

"Now they have released the information by quietly slipping it on to a departmental website. All Labour did was buy time to avoid embarrassment."

The commission was established under a deal Labour made after the 2002 election in exchange for United Future's support to govern.