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Director-General of Health and Chief Executive
Audrey Sonerson
Audrey Sonerson is the Director-General of Health and Chief Executive of the Ministry of Health, a role she was appointed to in April 2025. Audrey started her career at the Ministry of Health and has also worked in The Treasury’s health team. Audrey holds a Master of Commerce and Administration with her thesis focusing on health economics.
Audrey held senior positions at The Treasury, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the New Zealand Police, and the Ministry of Justice. Her most recent appointment was as Secretary of Transport and Chief Executive of the Ministry of Transport.
Deputy Director-General, Corporate Services
Celia Wellington
Celia has extensive experience in the field of organisational development, with a focus on organisational performance, capability development and culture change. She began her career in the field of organisational psychology, delivering consultancy services across the public and private sectors, and then moved into senior corporate roles in ACC and ESR.
Celia joined the Ministry in 2018 as the Group Manager People & Capability, before taking on the role of Deputy Director-General Corporate Services in 2020. Together, the corporate groups in the directorate ensure the internal machinery of the organisation works well in order to support the overall performance (financial and non-financial) of the Ministry.
Deputy Director-General, Māori Health
John Whaanga
John is affiliated to Ngāti Rākaipaaka, Ngāti Kahungunu and Ngāti Rongomaiwahine. In 2018, he was acknowledged in parliament for his work in successfully negotiating a $100 million Treaty of Waitangi settlement for Ngā Iwi me Ngā Hapū o Te Rohe o Te Wairoa – this was the culmination of over 30 years work.
John began his career in the Department of Conservation in 1989 (working on Treaty of Waitangi policy and negotiations), before moving on to the Ministry of Education (Māori Education Group) in 1991.
John originally joined the Ministry of Health in 1993, as a foundation member of the then newly established Māori Health Directorate, Te Kete Hauora. He then spent six years working in the Ministry, culminating in management roles in both public health and Māori health (as Manager, Te Kete Hauora). Following that, John worked for KPMG Consulting for 2 years and then for over 10 years he ran his own management consulting company, Kaipuke Consultants Limited.
John then undertook a number of significant roles in tertiary education, including as: Chief Advisor Wānanga, Tertiary Education Commission; Deputy Chief Executive, Te Wānanga o Aotearoa; and Chief Operating Officer, Taratahi Institute of Agriculture. He returned to the Ministry of Health and took up his current position in 2019.
Deputy Director-General, Performance and Governance
Brent Johnston
Brent comes to the Ministry of Health after 16 years with Ministry of Transport where he led across a number of policy, regulatory and governance functions.
Deputy Director-General, Public Health Agency
Dr Andrew Old
Andrew is a public health physician and has held a number of clinical leadership roles, as well as executive leadership and governance positions in strategy, community participation, patient experience, and quality improvement in his 20+ year career.
Andrew was the 2018/19 Commonwealth Fund Harkness Fellow for New Zealand, and was based between the Clinical Excellence Research Center at Stanford University, and the Social Interventions Research Evaluation Network at UC San Francisco.
Upon returning to NZ he was almost immediately seconded to support the Northern Region COVID-19 response, latterly as Chief Clinical Officer, before becoming the inaugural Deputy Director-General for the Public Health Agency on its formation in July 2022.
Andrew received his medical and public health degrees from the University of Auckland, and is a Fellow of the Australasian Faculty of Public Health Medicine. He was awarded Fellowship of the New Zealand Medical Association in 2011 for services to the profession and the public.
Deputy Director-General, Regulatory Services
David Shanks
David is an experienced leader with a background in law, organisational change and regulatory delivery.
Prior to joining the Ministry, David has led high-profile regulatory assessments, design and delivery across the both the private and public sectors. His experience also includes heading the Classification Office as Chief Censor and Chief Executive through a period of major challenge and technology-driven transformation.
David is an experienced consultant having worked as an Executive Director at the RDC Group working with government and private sector agencies on reviews, capability assessments and transformation.
With qualifications in Law from Otago (LLB) and Victoria (LLM), David has also held a number of other senior roles across the public service, including at the Ministry of Social Development and the Ministry of Education.
Deputy Director-General, Strategy and Policy
Ruth Isaac
Ruth brings with her a wealth of experience across the public service. She has held senior roles in government agencies including The Treasury, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, and the Department of Conservation.
From 2022 she served as Deputy Director-General for Policy and Regulatory Services at the Department of Conservation, where she led strategic policy, international engagement, Treaty negotiations, legal services, and regulatory functions. This included progressing a major overhaul of the Conservation Act to modernise the system for concessions and generate revenue for maintaining conservation areas.
Ruth is known for her strategic leadership, deep commitment to public policy, and her ability to build high-performing, inclusive teams. Ruth’s collaborative working style and strong track record of navigating complex systems will hold her in great stead as she picks up the reins for strategy and policy here at the Ministry of Health.
Acting Chief Financial Officer
Kevin Davies
Kevin has over 25 years’ experience in strategic financial roles, and has held senior leadership roles in both the private and public sector in the UK and New Zealand. He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, holds a Masters in Business Administration and an Honours degree in Mathematics and Computer Science.
In his time at the Ministry, he helped to work through the financial response to the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to work closely with the new health entities established following the health system reforms and introduction of the Pae Ora legislation in 2022.
