Perspectives
Legislation You Probably Didn’t Know About
You may have heard that when Russia invaded Ukraine, some New Zealanders decided to travel there and take up arms to help defend Ukraine. But, in fact, it was actually illegal. Under the Mercenary Activities (Prohibition) Act 2004, being a mercenary in foreign conflict is not allowed. At the time the Act was passed, the minister Phil Goff said that mercenary activities are “effectively paid murder”.
To many people, this came as a surprise. But what other pieces of legislation might surprise you?
- 02 Jun 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Governance
- Legislation
- Wellington
Panama Legislates to Give Nature Rights
“In Panama, scientists, lawyers and politicians are working together to dismantle current legal systems and popular mindsets about Nature. And, they’re collaborating to build it back better for the future of their country and the planet.
- 26 Apr 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Collaboration
- Public Service
- Science
Brief Deep Dive - Outsourcing by Max Harris
A really fascinating paper came out this week on outsourcing in the Quarterly Journal of Economics (thanks to Wilbur Townsend for flagging to me - who’s worth a follow on Twitter for good tweets, especially on economic policy). It compares private and public ambulance performance in Sweden. It found a few things. First, the evidence on the merits of ‘outsourcing’ - the process where the state contracts out key services to private (often for-profit) providers - is very thin. Second, private ambulances perform worse than public ambulances in Sweden on mortality outcomes. Thirdly, private ambulances “cost innovate” by driving down labour costs, resulting in the employment of staff with less experience and less training, who work longer hours with greater use of overtime.
- 26 Apr 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Public Service
Working Jointly in the New Zealand Public Sector – We Have Come a Long Way and Not Got Very Far
Working jointly across public agencies has been described as the holy grail or the philosopher’s stone of public management. Joint work is particularly important in New Zealand where, by world standards, there are a relatively large number of small public agencies. The Public Service Act 2020 has introduced a legal mandate for public joint ventures, and the Office of the Auditor-General recently reported on the difficulties experienced in the operation of one of the new joint ventures focused on family violence. IPANZ therefore decided to focus attention on this important set of developments.
- 11 Apr 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Collaboration
- Public Service
Does the Crown Minerals Act Undermine Partnership with Māori?
The Crown Minerals Act 1991 (CMA) was introduced “to promote prospecting for, exploration for, and mining of Crown owned minerals for the benefit of New Zealand.” A series of fundamental questions has emerged as to whether the Act undermines the ability of the Crown and tangata whenua, anchored in Te Tiriti o Waitangi, to operate in a true sense of partnership. Carl Billington takes a closer look in the April 2022 Edition of Public Sector Journal.
- 04 Apr 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Maori-Crown Relationships
- Public Service
- Te Tiriti
Where Does Democracy Belong in Select Committees?
In the light of enormous public engagement with select committees, Will Dreyer wonders if we are missing something. (From the April 2022 edition of Public Sector Journal) Last year, a record-breaking number of submissions were made to the Justice Select Committee on the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill: a massive 106,700 submissions. Assuming – conservatively – that each submission was on behalf of one individual, then this is equivalent to just under one out of every twenty-seven voters in the 2020 General Election submitting on this bill.
- 04 Apr 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Democracy
- Engagement
- Parliament
- Public Service
Isaiah Apiata - Te Hāpai Hāpori Spirit of Service Awards Young Leader of the Year
Isaiah Apiata, a youth justice leader and rangatira on his Te Tii Waitangi Marae, has been named Te Hāpai Hāpori Spirit of Service Awards Young Leader of the Year. What drives him is cultural connection, service, and a commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
- 21 Mar 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Culture and Heritage
- Leadership
- Public Service
The Lifelong Impact of Early Brain Development
The human brain undergoes extraordinary growth during the early years of life. By the age of one, the brain has already more than doubled in volume, and by the age of two, it is 80 percent adult size. Dr Felicia Low from Koi Tū: The Centre for Informed Futures, University of Auckland, outlines some fascinating results from recent research and what it might mean for policy making.
- 21 Mar 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Public Service
- Research
- Wellbeing
Doing Our Best By Pacific Communities
Dr Collin Fonotau Tukuitonga, Associate Dean Pacific and Associate Professor of Public Health at the University of Auckland, reflects on the role of public servants in working with and delivering for Pacific communities.
- 14 Mar 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Leadership
- Public Service
- Wellbeing
A Review of the Literature on Joint Ventures in the Public Sector
The attached paper, written to support an IPANZ roundtable workshop, explores the literature on interagency collaboration, focusing on more formal collaboration including joint ventures. The discussion is limited to collaboration within central government although similar issues arise in international, central-local, public-private, and public-NGO working.
This summary of the literature is intended to create a shared language and shared understandings for participants in the roundtable.
- 07 Mar 2022
- 2022
- Best Practice
- Collaboration
- Public Service
- Wellington
Seven Steps to Ensure the UK Learns from a COVID-19 Public Inquiry
This article is an excerpt from the below publication laying out the steps to ensure there is learning from the COVID public enquiry.
https://covidandsociety.com/how-covid-19-public-inquiry-help-uk-learn-right-lessons/
People at every level have worked incredibly hard over the last two years. Yet what is not in doubt is that the UK has performed badly, exhibiting among the highest levels of excess mortality and economic harm, as well as the largest debt and tax burden in living memory. Hopefully we can perform better in the way we learn lessons from the pandemic.
- 21 Feb 2022
- 2022
- Accountability
- Best Practice
- Inquiries
- Trust & Confidence
Notes on an IPANZ Roundtable on - Policy Making Under Pressure: Rethinking the Policy Process in Aotearoa
The New Zealand Productivity Commission and IPANZ hosted the roundtable online on Friday 11 February. The original paper by Jeremy Richardson and Sonia Mazey was in the December Public Sector Journal and they began by presenting some of their conclusions.
- 21 Feb 2022
- Best Practice
- Policy Advice
New Zealand Innovation Barometer - How Your Organisation Can Be Involved
After successfully running the Innovation Barometer with nine government organisations, we are excited to offer the Innovation Barometer to a wider audience in 2022. Organisations can see how the Innovation Barometer aligns with their priorities. Ministry of Health Group Manager of Emerging Health Technology Jon Herries says “The health reforms have identified that innovation is a key part of the new operating model and the Innovation Barometer will help us understand where we need to make improvements.”
- 13 Dec 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Innovation
- Public Service
- Technology
Signing The Way
COVID press conferences have brought sign language interpreters into the public eye. In fact, New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) is one of our three official languages, and interpreters have been providing this essential service, across private and government agencies, for many years. Kathy Ombler spoke with two of them.
- 07 Dec 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Engagement
- Public Service
Evaluation Culture and Practice in the Public Service
Dr Jacqueline Cumming, Dr Janet McDonald, Dr Ausaga Fa‘asalele Tanuvasa, Dr Lynne Russell, Dr Clive Aspin (including contributions from the late Dr Jenny Neale, and from Dr Sue Buckley) report on a major new research project on evaluation in the public sector.
- 28 Nov 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Public Service
Valuing Pacific to Build a Stronger Aotearoa Public Service
Romeo Tevaga explores what is holding the public service back from having better representation of Pacific staff, and he explores the unique benefits that Pacific staff bring to organisations.
- 28 Nov 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Culture and Heritage
- Public Service
Q&A with Privacy Commissioner John Edwards
Before he heads off to the UK, Shenagh Gleisner talks with Privacy Commissioner John Edwards about the challenges he sees to having a good privacy system.
- 28 Nov 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Privacy
- Public Service
- Trust & Confidence
Reduction in Prison Population Achieved Through Human-Centric Approach
How has making a strategic shift from focusing on the system to focusing on people brought about a reduction in New Zealand’s prison population? Lana Simmons Donaldson explores how Ara Poutama Aotearoa the Department of Corrections’ new approach is reducing over-representation of Māori in the corrections system and is transforming the organisation from the inside out.Article published in the December 2021 Edition of Public Sector Journal
- 25 Nov 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Maori-Crown Relationships
- Public Service
- Te Tiriti
- Wellbeing
COVID 19 – Fair Critics or Moaners and Complainers?
The pandemic has brought out the best and the worst of New Zealand. Dave Armstrong takes a direct look at the extreme reactions he’s seen to the public sector response to COVID-19.
- 22 Nov 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Crisis Response
- Public Service
The Future Challenges for Public Sector Leadership
This is a conversation which is probably occurring across the public sector. Are we nurturing, training, seeking and developing the leadership the public sector will need in 2030? As an input to this conversation, we summarise some interesting points from some work done by Deloitte in the UK, “a new mindset for public sector leadership: Take the#TenYear Challenge”.
- 22 Nov 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Leadership
- Public Service
New Zealand Innovation Barometer - Case Study Themes
The NZ Innovation Barometer presents a set of detailed case studies which are a practical demonstration of how innovation has been applied for the benefit of New Zealanders. This document shares the themes from the case studies to date for other public sector organisations to learn from. We are adding more as they are developed through the 2021 Barometer cycle.
- 28 Oct 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Innovation
- Public Service
Future Leadership Challenges – An External Perspective
Dave Winsborough often has insightful and fresh views on organisational leadership, I sought him out in the depths of Northland for a conversation about future leadership. Here are a few gems from our conversation which gives an out of Wellington, perspective.
- 26 Oct 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Leadership
- Public Service
The Psychology of Fear and Blame
Our leaders, whether political or public sector are surrounded by a myriad of people who assert that, if they were in leadership positions, they would have managed the pandemic so much better.
Our democracy and political system means that people opposed to the government will take opportunities to challenge Ministers responsible for these decisions. Of course. This has sometimes spread to leaders in the public service who are also under pressure. It is fairness to these leaders and public sector staff that IPANZ wants.
- 26 Oct 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Crisis Response
- Leadership
- Public Service
Getting Your Message Across in the Media
There is a perennial challenge and opportunity for public servants, getting the message across in the media and managing reputation. We attach here a very helpful little piece with great tips for good media communication prepared for IPANZ by SenateSHJ.
- 12 Oct 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Engagement
- Public Service
- Reputation
A Brief Synthesis of The McGuinness Institute Concept of "a noisy world"
The McGuinness Institute undertook an assessment of New Zealand's handling of COVID. Just one of the many commentaries on this subject, but one you may not have seen in your news feed. Within this document there is an interesting section on "the challenges we face - a noisy world". In summary, it talks of the multiple crises we are facing and describes them in terms of "noise"...
- 11 Oct 2021
- 2021
- Best Practice
- Crisis Response
- Public Service