Thompson Lewis

1. Business / Trading Name: Thompson Lewis Limited (trading as Thompson Lewis – specialist corporate affairs consultancy).

2. Company Number: 6072309.

3. NZBN: 9429042495567.

4. Entity Type: NZ Limited Company.

5. Business Classification: M696280 – Public Relations Counselling Service (corporate/government relations advisory).

6. Industry Category: Public Relations and Communications Services (government relations, strategic communications, media relations).

7. Year Founded: 2016 (Incorporated 08 August 2016).

8. Addresses:

   • Registered Office: Fay Richwhite Building (SAP Tower), Level 28, 151 Queen Street, Auckland 1010.

   • Service Address: 151 Queen Street, Auckland Central, Auckland 1010.

   • Previous Address(es): 10/268 Onewa Road, Birkenhead, Auckland (Aug 2016–Jan 2017); 98A Exmouth Road, Northcote, Auckland 0627 (2017–2023).

9. Website URL:

http://www.thompsonlewis.co.nz

9. .

10. LinkedIn URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thompson-lewis.

11. CompanyHub NZ URL: https://www.companyhub.nz/companyDetails.cfm?nzbn=9429042495567.

12. NZ Companies Office URL: NZ Companies Office Registry Entry: Companies Register search – ID 6072309.

13. Social Media URLs:

    • Twitter: Data Not Found (no official company Twitter identified).

    • Facebook: Data Not Found (no official Facebook page found).

    • LinkedIn: Provided above (official LinkedIn company page).

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

15. Key Shareholders: Shareholding: 100 shares split equally among four individual co-owners (25% each held by):

    • Gordon Jon (“GJ”) Thompson (25 shares) – Director.

    • David Edmett Botfield Lewis (25 shares) – Director.

    • Viliami Siosifa Moala (“Sifa”) Taumoepeau (25 shares) – Director.

    • Wayne Campbell Eagleson (25 shares) – Director.

16. Leadership:

    • G.J. Thompson – Director (Co-Founder): Former Chief of Staff to PM Jacinda Ardern (2017–2018); former Press Secretary in PM Helen Clark’s office; corporate affairs roles at Fonterra and SkyCity.

    • David Lewis – Director (Co-Founder): Former Chief Press Secretary to PM Helen Clark; communications advisor to Auckland mayors (e.g., Len Brown, Phil Goff); corporate communications consultant.

    • Sifa Taumoepeau – Director: Government relations specialist, formerly in-house public affairs for SkyCity and Fonterra; one-time parliamentary researcher/policy advisor.

    • Wayne Eagleson – Director: Wellington-based; former Chief of Staff to PMs John Key and Bill English (2008–2017) and advisor under PM Jim Bolger; senior roles at Transpower and corporates (Westpac, DB Breweries).

17. Staff: Aside from the four Directors (who are hands-on consultants), no additional staff are publicly listed. The company is a boutique firm (estimated 2–10 employees in total), with no junior staff or other consultants disclosed on its website.

18. Staff with Previous Government Roles: All four principal consultants have held senior government roles:

    • G.J. Thompson – Ex-Chief of Staff in the Prime Minister’s Office (Ardern) and former press secretary in a previous Labour Government.

    • David Lewis – Ex-Chief Press Secretary to Prime Minister Helen Clark.

    • Sifa Taumoepeau – Former parliamentary staff (research/policy advisor).

    • Wayne Eagleson – Ex-Chief of Staff to two National Party Prime Ministers (Key, English).

19. Past Employees: Data Not Found. (No known past employees outside of current directors. No public record of other staff leaving or retiring from the firm.)

20. Clients: Known Corporate & Government Clients:

20. Transpower: The state-owned national grid operator has retained Thompson Lewis on lobbying and communications contracts (a ~$50,000/year retainer plus project fees). TL advised Transpower on political communications and strategy.

20. Huawei: The Chinese tech firm engaged Thompson Lewis for government relations during its effort to participate in NZ’s 5G network rollout. (Huawei’s 5G bid was ultimately denied by authorities.)

21. NZ Bus (Infratil): Hired Thompson Lewis for public relations and lobbying amid a contentious Wellington bus drivers’ union dispute.

20. SkyCity Entertainment Group: Thompson Lewis has lobbied on behalf of SkyCity (casino and gaming), including outreach to ministerial advisors on gambling policy. Notably, both Thompson and Taumoepeau previously worked for SkyCity, indicating a close relationship.

20. Brewers Association of NZ: Thompson Lewis represents alcohol industry interests; G.J. Thompson has counted the Brewers’ Association (beverage industry lobby) among his clients.

20. AUT (Auckland University of Technology): Provided communications advice under contract in early 2021.

20. Other corporate clients: The firm (and its principals) have advised a range of industries – e.g., energy and infrastructure (in addition to Transpower, e.g., power companies), agriculture/dairy (Fonterra), telcos, land development, and iwi ventures. Many specific private-sector clients remain undisclosed publicly.

21. Industries/Sectors Represented: Broad Sector Coverage: Thompson Lewis’s clientele and staff expertise span numerous sectors:

21. Telecommunications & Technology: e.g., Huawei (telecom equipment).

22. Energy & Infrastructure: e.g., Transpower (electricity infrastructure).

23. Transportation: e.g., Public transport operator NZ Bus.

24. Gambling & Entertainment: e.g., SkyCity (casino and hospitality).

25. Alcohol & Beverage: e.g., Brewers Association (beer industry).

26. Education: e.g., AUT (tertiary education sector).

27. Primary & Industrial: Principals have worked with dairy (Fonterra), land development, iwi business, manufacturing, and financial services sectors, indicating the firm’s reach into heavily regulated industries.

22. Publicly Disclosed Engagements: Lobbying Transparency:

22. Government Contracts: OIA-obtained documents show Thompson Lewis contracted with Transpower to provide political intelligence profiles on Members of Parliament and strategic communications advice. In one instance, TL’s Wayne Eagleson prepared advice for Transpower on managing Official Information Act disclosures to minimize media fallout.

23. Select Committee/Submissions: No record found of Thompson Lewis making formal parliamentary submissions under its own name; it typically operates behind the scenes on behalf of clients.

24. Ministerial Contacts: Communications uncovered by RNZ show Thompson Lewis lobbyists directly texting ministerial advisors to arrange “a quick yarn” on policy matters (e.g., gambling) on behalf of clients. These informal engagements are not publicly logged but illustrate the firm’s behind-the-scenes advocacy. Aside from investigative revelations, there is little public documentation of TL’s lobbying meetings or outputs due to NZ’s opaque lobbying regime.

23. Affiliations: Political & Corporate Networks:

23. Wayne Eagleson: Board Director of Wellington International Airport Ltd (appointed after leaving the Beehive). This role connects him to major corporate and local-government stakeholders.

24. Sifa Taumoepeau: Board member of the Anglican Trust for Women & Children, and of the Fred Hollows Foundation NZ (philanthropic roles).

25. Professional Associations: No specific industry body memberships (e.g., PR Institute) are publicly listed for the firm. However, the team’s bipartisan political affiliations are notable: the firm is well connected within both the Labour and National Party circles by virtue of its directors’ backgrounds.

26. Media Links: G.J. Thompson is the brother of Paul Thompson, CEO of RNZ (Radio NZ), a fact publicly acknowledged to manage any perceived conflict in RNZ’s reporting on lobbying.

24. Sponsorships / Collaborations: Data Not Found. (No public information on Thompson Lewis sponsoring events, partnering in campaigns, or formal collaborations. The firm tends to operate discretely and there are no known sponsorships in the public domain.)

25. Events (Organised/Hosted): Data Not Found. (No known public events or conferences hosted by Thompson Lewis. Any events are likely private client briefings. The firm has a low public profile aside from its consultancy work.)

26. Political Donations: Data Not Found. (No record of any political donations by Thompson Lewis or its directors appears in Electoral Commission disclosures. The principals, as former civil servants, generally avoid publicly backing parties through donations.)

27. Controversies:

27. Revolving Door & Conflicts: The firm has been at the center of NZ’s lobbying transparency debate. Most prominently, co-founder G.J. Thompson’s dual role as an active lobbyist and Jacinda Ardern’s Chief of Staff during the formation of her government in late 2017 raised conflict-of-interest concerns. He remained a director/shareholder of Thompson Lewis while advising the PM, and neither his clients nor potential conflicts were disclosed at the time. Ardern later admitted she was unaware Huawei was his client until media reports emerged.

27. Huawei Client Secrecy: Thompson Lewis’s work for Huawei became controversial given NZ’s security concerns. The PM’s office was not informed that Huawei was a client of Thompson Lewis until a journalist’s inquiry in 2019, highlighting a lack of transparency. Critics noted the potential risk if sensitive government discussions had overlapped with Thompson’s private client interests.

27. Perception of Union Busting: In 2018, NZ Bus’s decision to hire Thompson Lewis amid a protracted labor dispute drew fire from union allies. Some in Labour circles viewed Thompson Lewis’s involvement as an attempt to undermine bus driver unions. Despite that, PM Ardern continued to publicly socialize with G.J. Thompson, underscoring the close relationship.

27. Lack of Disclosure: Generally, Thompson Lewis has faced scrutiny as part of a broader criticism that NZ lobbying operates “in the shadows” without public disclosure. Its very success – built on personal networks and the “old boys” circuit – is cited by academics as evidence of an unregulated influence system.

28. Other information of note: Thompson Lewis is widely regarded as one of the most influential lobbying firms in New Zealand, despite its small size. Media describe it as “small but influential” and part of the political “in-crowd” in Wellington. The addition of ex-National chief of staff Wayne Eagleson in 2019 gave the firm truly bipartisan reach, meaning Thompson Lewis remains well-connected regardless of which major party is in power. Industry observers often mention Thompson Lewis in the same breath as older firms like Saunders Unsworth, reflecting its significant clout in a short time. Notably, RNZ’s 2023 investigative series on lobbying frequently spotlighted Thompson Lewis as exemplifying the revolving-door phenomenon and the “extraordinary reach” lobbyists have achieved in NZ’s political system.

29. Recipient of Wage Subsidy Scheme: No. There is no record of Thompson Lewis Ltd receiving the COVID-19 wage subsidy in 2020–21 (the company does not appear in the public wage subsidy recipient lists). The firm likely did not claim pandemic wage subsidies, implying it did not meet the revenue loss criteria or chose not to apply.

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