KiwiRail board directors Rachel Pinn and Ed Sims resign after chairman David McLean retires early

Outgoing KiwiRail chairman David McLean and Finance Minister Nicola Willis. He announced his resignation the same weekend as the Aratere grounding.

Two KiwiRail directors have resigned from the board after Finance Minister Nicola Willis warned a “refresh” was coming.

The resignations also come after the Aratere ran aground in Picton and as the future of Interislander hangs in the balance.

The directors who resigned are Rachel Pinn, a transport consultant, and Ed Sims, the former chief executive of Canadian airline WestJet.

KiwiRail confirmed Sims’ resignation was effective from June 28 and Pinn’s would take effect on July 31.

Just over a week ago, the early retirement of KiwiRail board chairman and former Westpac NZ chief executive David McLean was announced.

Minister for State Owned Enterprises Paul Goldsmith said a search for a replacement board chair is under way and will be progressed urgently.

“We are evaluating potential skill gaps on the board with a view to bringing in new members. This work is ongoing.”

Willis warned last week that other KiwiRail board members could lose their jobs after she announced chairman David McLean would be retiring early.

The Herald revealed Willis challenged KiwiRail’s spending on global management consultants McKinsey & Company in the week before McLean told ministers he would be leaving early.

He has said he was stepping aside from the start of the new financial year because that was best for KiwiRail as it entered a new phase of its development.

The Government was told about McLean’s retirement before the Aratere grounded. Ministers decided to announce his resignation the same weekend as the serious incident.

“I understand the Government intends to announce my retirement today, so I have brought my announcement forward”, McLean said in his statement on June 23.

Willis was recently asked whether she had confidence in the board and KiwiRail chief executive Peter Reidy.

“Ultimately, it is for us to have confidence in the board. The board decides who their executive and management are and, as we announced at the weekend, the chair of KiwiRail has retired early from that board,” Willis said.

“We will be refreshing that position and we will be looking to refresh the board more generally to ensure it has the skills and expertise needed to lead that organisation into the future.”

In an exclusive interview with the Herald last week, Reidy said he was not worried about losing his job and was committed to staying in the role.

“I was invited back here to improve the performance of this business and I can show you that we’re getting some performance improvement definitely in safety. Last year, we had a record financial result, it’s been a tough year this year but we’ve got a bold plan for the future,” he said.

“I can show you we are lifting reliability for customers, we’ve got a much better relationship with customers than we had three years ago, our culture is lifting, we’ve got some great execs [who] were brought on board from the private sector and have a bold ambition to improve this business.”

Georgina Campbell is a Wellington-based reporter who has a particular interest in local government, transport, and seismic issues. She joined the Herald in 2019 after working as a broadcast journalist.