Kevin Poynter, a former New Zealand Department of Labour mine inspector, endured a third day of questioning from lawyers at the Royal Commission inquiry into the Pike River mine tragedy that killed 29 men.

Following a cross-examination from the lawyer John Haigh, representing former Pike River Coal general manager Doug White, the court heard that on April 8, 2010, Poynter voiced his concerns about the Alimak raise being used as a second means of exit from the mine.

Poynter described the second exit as not a “good permanent solution”

“It was an egress but it wasn’t adequate,” Poynter said.

On the day, he requested an action plan detailing a timeline for a sufficient second egress be completed and sent to him.

However, Poynter hadn’t followed up on the need for an improved exit until August 2010, when he went underground with Doug White and it was agreed a new egress should be established as soon as possible.

It wasn’t until November 2, 2010, that Poynter received a plan of the estimated timing and completion of a new egress, which would coincide with the first full-extraction panel at Pike River.

“Following your receipt of the plan on the 2nd of November you wrote to Mr White on the 3rd of November on another issue, you wrote to him on the 4th of November on another issue and on the 8th of November you wrote to Mr White again on another issue … and none of those letters contained any concerns about the plan for the second egress, the second walkout egress, correct?” Haigh said.

Poynter confirmed the point and went on to defend the claim that replacing the second egress hadn’t been a high priority for him.

“It would’ve taken me some time, even though it was a short report, to formulate a view and formulate a plan to work through in my own mind with Mr White on how we were going to achieve the outcome,” Poynter said.

“You won’t know this but in that period in November, I was required by the department to be a first response person at a fatality on a farm, so in addition to trying to do what I was doing here with my mining responsibilities, I was also dealing with issues around a fatality on a farm and it took me away from my work.”

Poynter also had to defend his decision not to follow up with the plan to replace the second egress when questioned by PRC counsel Stacey Shortall.

“There are other things that I was doing all through that period, including in June dealing with a loss of a grandson,” he said.

“So I find it a little bit rich to be suggested to me that I just wasn’t following up 'cos I wasn’t concerned about it.

“It should’ve been the highest priority to Pike River, they’re the ones in control of the workplace Ms Shortall, not the inspectors.”

While Poynter didn’t believe the second egress was an efficient escape route from the mine, he argued the makeshift exit would have been upheld in a court.

“My view has always been that in a legal challenge, the way the legislation was written, it could stand up as being a second means of egress,” Poynter said.

However, Poynter conceded men would not be able to climb out of the second egress in the event of a fire because it would have been releasing gas.

Poynter said in hindsight, enforcement action surrounding the lax safety standards of the second egress should have been taken.

The commission also heard of the worrying differences between Australian and New Zealand mining safety and training standards after Poynter revealed he was put onto a risk assessment course within three weeks of arriving in Queensland to begin his role as mining inspector for the Queensland Mining Inspectorate.

Poynter was employed as mining inspector with the DoL from 2008 to June 2011 and said he had asked for the course and he “possibly would’ve got on it this year”

“I think there was a general acceptance when I started here in New Zealand, Kevin’s got his first-class mine manager’s ticket, he’s got a considerable amount of experience, we’ll teach him to be a health and safety inspector, a general workplace qualification and really leave him to get on and do the job,” Poynter said.

The view was also supported by DoL health and safety practice development leader Alan Cooper, who took to questioning in the afternoon.

Cooper told the inquiry training of underground mining staff in New Zealand focused on general skills, believing there was not satisfactory training for underground inspectors.

Cooper said in high hazard industries, such as underground mining, the method of assessment for inspectors should shift towards an audit based approach.

The inquiry heard safety issues raised by mine inspectors at steering group meetings seemingly never made their way to his practice team.

Cooper said the inquiry had so far been an eye-opener for him.