Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has apologised but says no one will be sacked after the Chief Ombudsman found his office breached the Official Information Act (OIA).
The ruling relates to a complaint by the NZ Herald about a weeks-long delay in the release of Government documents about the Auckland Anniversary flooding earlier this year.
The Herald asked multiple Government departments and ministerial offices for official documents outlining how they responded during and after the devastating floods - which the Prime Minister's office was asked too.
An OIA requires a government department to provide a response within 20 working days, though the request can be extended for a reasonable time if a large amount of information and consultation is needed about what should be released.
Hikpins' office extended its time to respond on March 24 but subsequently missed the new deadline, the Herald reported, adding his office then did not reply to a reporter's emails seeking updates.
By April 21, the reporter then received a batch of documents and then another on July 24. However, the delay was not explained nor was an apology isused.
According to the NZ Herald, Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier issued a formal finding - telling the Prime Minister's office to apologise and to report back on what improvements it is making to its processes to avoid the same issue again.
On Friday, Hipkins said he has not yet had a chance to read Boshier's findings and said he "absolutely always accept" such advice.
"My understanding is that there were issues around timeframe that weren't being complied with," Hipkins told reporters.
Hipkins said his government has been focused on improving the timeliness of OIA requests and said it has gotten better overall. But he admitted his own office not meeting timeframes is "not meeting" his expectation.
"I will absolutely apologise for that, which I think is what the Ombudsman has asked for and we will certainly make sure that we are compliant with the timeframes."
When asked if a member of his staff would get fired as a result, Hipkins replied: "No."
