Ministry for Culture and Heritage

The Ministry for Culture and Heritage (MCH; ) is the department of the New Zealand Government responsible for supporting the arts, culture, built heritage, sport and recreation, and broadcasting sectors in New Zealand and advising government on such. History The Ministry of Cultural Affairs had been created in 1991; prior to this, the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) had provided oversight and support for arts and culture functions. MCH was founded in 1999 with the merger of the former Ministry of Cultural Affairs and the history and heritage functions of the DIA, as well as some functions from the Department of Conservation and Ministry of Commerce. The purpose of the merger of functions and departments was to create a coherent, non-fragmented overview of the cultural and heritage sector, rather than spreading services and functions across several departments. Minister for Cultural Affairs Marie Hasler oversaw the transition of functions into the new agency. Opposition Labour MP Judith Tizard, who would later serve as an Associate Minister for the ministry in the Fifth Labour Government of New Zealand, accused the restructure of being "all hype, no substance," lacking the funding and human resource necessary to be effective.