Minister calls for TV boss's card details

Rick Ellis. Photo / Martin Sykes

Television New Zealand boss Rick Ellis's $140,000 credit card spending in two years sounds high, Broadcasting Minister Jonathan Coleman says, but he will reserve judgment until he hears from the state broadcaster's board today.

In the 24 months to June this year, Mr Ellis spent $140,768.19 on his TVNZ-issued credit card, the Sunday Star-Times reported.

Obtained under the Official Information Act, the bill included $32,000 in entertainment charges

Last week, State Service Commissioner Iain Rennie warned top public servants they were spending too much of taxpayers' money on fine dining and alcohol for staff.

But the information provided by TVNZ did not give the same detail on how the money was spent as did Mr Rennie's release of credit card records for 36 state sector chief executives.

TVNZ said disclosure of comparable level was not made as the information was commercially sensitive.

Yesterday, Dr Coleman told the Herald Mr Ellis's spending "sounds high compared to other entities".

But without details of how the money was spent, "you can't really tell".

"The point I'd make is what we've found with the departmental chief executives is that they use their credit cards in different ways. It's very hard to tell what those absolute amounts mean at this stage ... I don't have any indication of what his bill was made up of."

TVNZ spokeswoman Megan Richards last night told the Herald that - despite "widespread impressions" to the contrary - none of the expenses racked up by Mr Ellis were paid from taxpayer dollars.

"The perception is taxpayer funds subsidise our expenses and salaries ... That's absolutely not the case."

TVNZ was effectively "100 per cent commercially funded".

Details of how Mr Ellis incurred his credit card costs were commercially sensitive, as the station competed against private companies that were under no obligation to declare their expenses, she said.