In a democracy, the health of public institutions rests not only on what governments decide, but on whether those decisions can be seen and questioned. New Zealand's chief ombudsman John Allen has moved to confront the Education Ministry after video evidence emerged suggesting staff were instructed to keep ministerial feedback on curriculum drafts out of the written record — a practice that, if confirmed, would hollow out the Official Information Act from within. The episode arrives at a delicate moment for curriculum reform, where questions about who shapes educational direction and for whom