CRA
About us
About us
The Competition & Regulatory Authority is a statutory body, which acts independently of the government of the day, in the exercise of economic and technical regulatory powers and functions over particular sectors of the economy designated by act of Parliament.
As at 1 March 2021, telecommunications is the sector subject to the Authority’s jurisdiction, under the provisions of the Telecommunications Act 2019.
The Authority comprises up to three members, being suitably qualified individuals, appointed by the Minister in charge, on the recommendation of a special purpose Evaluation Committee. The Committee is made up of the Financial Secretary, the Public Service Commissioner, and the Solicitor-General.
Currently, the Authority has one member, the Chair, Mr. Bernard Hill. The Authority has one staff member, Ms Etuatina Drollett.
CRA Officers and Staff
Bernard Hill
Chair
Bernie Hill is a New Zealander, and former barrister and solicitor with extensive private and public sector experience in competition law and policy, as well as complex commercial transactions. As Chair of the Cook Islands CRA, he is in his fourth role as senior economic and technical regulator, having served as Telecommunications Commissioner of Solomon Islands; Head of Competition Affairs in Hong Kong, and as Director and Office solicitor in the former New Zealand Department of Trade & Industry.He is the author of two publications on New Zealand’s competition and fair trading laws and has contributed to a number of international anti-trust publications .
Etuatina Drollett
Office Administrator
Ms. Drollett is a long standing Cook Island resident, who for many years served as executive secretary to the office of Financial Secretary at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Management. As office administrator at the CRA Ms. Drollett provides administrative and secretarial support and advice to the Chair.