'Grumpy' Key confirms open secret

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In an unprecedented move, the Government has appointed a businessman, not a public servant, to head the Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry.

State Services Commissioner Iain Rennie named NZ Post chief executive John Allen yesterday as the new chief executive and secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

There had been speculation over Mr Allen's appointment since well before the interview stage, raising eyebrows in the public service and prompting suggestions proper procedure had not been followed. There is no precedent for the secretary to be appointed from outside the public service.

Prime Minister John Key said yesterday he was unhappy Mr Allen's name was in the public domain before he was officially appointed, "and I have made my unhappiness known".

He did not believe it was a leak from the Cabinet or from the ministry. "I do have a sense of where it came from and I am grumpy about it."

He would not name the person.

Mr Allen had the strongest credentials of the candidates.

"I don't think the fact that he is not a long-term bureaucrat means that he can't fulfil the role and do it well."

Mr Allen joined NZ Post in 1994 and was promoted to chief executive in 2003. He joins the ministry on July 20.

- © Fairfax NZ News