Government needs to spell out its plan for the public service

The Public Service Association says the government needs to come clean and spell out its plan for a rolling restructure of the public service.

The government has announced this afternoon that it plans to merge the National Library and Archives New Zealand into the Department of Internal Affairs. The Food Safety Authority will merged into the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The Foundation for Research, Science and Technology will be merged with the Ministry of Research, Science and Technology.

“Before the election John Key promised that a National government would not radically restructure the public sector because of the cost and disruption it would cause,” says PSA national secretary Brenda Pilott.

“The Prime Minister has broken that promise because the mergers announced today signal the first stage of a rolling restructure of the public sector.”

“The government needs to end the secrecy and tell the public and public service staff what its plan is for the public sector.”

“Our experience is that mergers of government departments are expensive, disruptive and complex with no guarantee that the money spent and the upheaval caused will improve service delivery.”

In a speech to the PSA before the election, Mr Key highlighted the cost of restructuring: “Few problems are solved by significant reorganisations – in fact, many more tend to be created. It is easy to underestimate the amount of energy and inspiration soaked up by institutional change, as well as the loss of personal and institutional knowledge.”

PSA members at the National Library and Archives were briefed this afternoon. “These members are shocked and angry. The government’s decision does not make a strong case for amalgamating the National Library and Archives into the Department of Internal Affairs. There is no real reason given to take this step,” says Brenda Pilott.

“Staff in a number of agencies now face an uncertain time as they await further details of how the mergers will proceed. We know that some jobs will be lost and it creates an enormous amount of uncertainty and disruption. The PSA will be working hard to ensure that members’ interests are looked after throughout what is a very difficult time for them.”

ENDS

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