New Zealand First - a longtime critic of Whanau Ora - is welcoming official scrutiny of part of the programme's spending.
Te Puni Kokiri is reviewing the Whanau Integration, Innovation and Engagement Fund.
Four members of the We Against Violence Trust, who have links to the Mongrel Mob, have been charged with the misuse of $20,000 of taxpayer funding.
Te Puni Kokiri says it has contracts with the trust worth about $50,000.
Police are investigating $20,000 of that sum, paid out under the Whanau Ora scheme.
New Zealand First's spokesperson on Maori Affairs, Brendan Horan, says the review is overdue. He says the sad thing about Whanau Ora is that it is taking money from other sectors such as health, which is missing out.
Mr Horan says New Zealanders need to be sure that money is being spent wisely.
