Richmond Bartley

1. Business / Trading Name: Richmond Bartley Limited (trading as “Richmond Bartley Strategic Advisors”)

2. Company number: 9268066

3. NZBN: 9429052277979

4. Entity type: NZ Limited Company (Privately held)

5. Business classification: M696275 – Public affairs consultant service

6. Industry Category: Public affairs and communications consultancy (business consulting and services)

7. Year founded: 2024

8. Addresses:

• Registered Office: Ingham Mora Limited, Second Floor, 60 Durham Street, Tauranga, 3110 , New Zealand

• Business Address: “The Village”, 102 Jervois Road, Herne Bay, Auckland 1011, New Zealand

9. Website URL:

https://www.richmondbartley.com

10. LinkedIn URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/richmond-bartley/?trk=similar-pages&originalSubdomain=nz

11. Company Hub NZ URL: https://www.companyhub.nz/companyDetails.cfm?nzbn=9429052277979

12. NZ Companies Office URL: https://app.companiesoffice.govt.nz/companies/app/ui/pages/companies/9268066 (Incorporated Societies Register)

13. Social Media URLs: Andrew Kirton’s X (Twitter) – https://x.com/andykirton (Director’s personal social account). (No dedicated company Twitter/Facebook identified)

14. Ultimate Holding Company: None (no parent entity)

15. Key Shareholders: Andrew Kirton (likely sole shareholder) (Data not publicly disclosed; no other shareholders registered)

16. Leadership: Andrew Kirton – Director and Founder. (No separate board; he is the sole director)

17. Staff: Only Andrew Kirton is publicly listed. (Company size “1–10” implies he operates essentially as a one-person firm).

18. Staff that have held previous government roles: Andrew Kirton – former General Secretary of the NZ Labour Party (2016–2018) and Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Chris Hipkins (2023). (No other staff disclosed)

19. Past Employees: None known. (Firm established Aug 2024; no departures publicly reported)

20. Clients: Not publicly disclosed. (As a private lobbying consultancy, client identities are kept confidential. Andrew Kirton indicated the firm advises “companies, charities and NGOs” in navigating government. One pro bono client, the Tania Dalton Foundation (sports charity), has acknowledged Kirton’s assistance in media outreach.)

21. Industries/Sectors represented: Known past lobbying work by Kirton includes the alcohol and beverage industry (e.g. lobbying on recycling policy for liquor companies). The firm’s services cover sectors needing government relations, regulatory affairs, and corporate communications, without limitation to any single industry.

22. Publicly Disclosed Engagements: None formally disclosed. (No public register exists in NZ. Kirton’s involvement in lobbying emerged via Official Information Act disclosures – e.g. emails to ministers on behalf of beverage clients. The firm itself has not voluntarily published any lobbying activities or submissions.)

23. Affiliations: Member of the Public Relations Institute of NZ (PRINZ) – adheres to PRINZ Code of Ethics. No known registration with any official lobbying transparency scheme (none mandatory in NZ).

24. Sponsorships / Collaborations: None known. (No record of Richmond Bartley sponsoring events; the firm has offered pro bono support to at least one non-profit as a community goodwill gesture.)

25. Events (held or organised by this organisation): None publicly recorded. (No seminars, conferences or public events organised by Richmond Bartley have been noted to date.)

26. Political Donations: None identified. (Neither Richmond Bartley nor Andrew Kirton appear in public political donation records as significant donors. Kirton’s influence has been through advisory roles rather than direct funding.)

27. Controversies:

• Revolving Door Appointment (2023): Andrew Kirton’s move from leading a lobbying firm (Anacta) into the Prime Minister’s Office raised conflict-of-interest concerns. His firm’s work lobbying against a container recycling scheme, and the scheme’s subsequent shelving by a government he joined, drew public scrutiny.

• Labour Party Youth Camp Scandal (2018): As Labour Party General Secretary, Kirton was criticised for handling of a sexual assault incident at a Young Labour camp, failing to promptly inform police, victims’ parents, or the Prime Minister. He faced calls to resign at the time, and the party apologised for its poor response.

• (See Part Two for detailed analysis of these issues.)

28. Other information of note: Andrew Kirton is married to Camilla Belich, a current Labour Party Member of Parliament. This marital connection to a sitting MP underscores potential conflict-of-interest concerns. Kirton also previously worked as Head of Corporate Affairs at Air New Zealand (2018–2021), where he served under then-CEO Christopher Luxon – now Prime Minister and leader of the National Party. This gives Kirton personal networks across both major political parties. The firm prominently claims adherence to ethical standards (PRINZ Code), positioning itself as “strategic advisors” rather than just lobbyists.

29. Recipient of Wage Subsidy Scheme: No. (Richmond Bartley was incorporated in August 2024, after the COVID-19 wage subsidy programme (2020–21) had ended, hence it never received wage subsidies.)

Spot anything in this entry that is wrong? Please either leave a comment at the end or email, in confidence: bryce@democracyproject.nz