The government has set five-year targets for the public service which Prime Minister John Key says form a to-do list not a wish list:
“These targets are central to the Government’s plans to create a public service that is more innovative, enterprising, driven, and focused on results,” Mr Key says.
These measurable targets, which will be reported on regularly, sit underneath the 10 challenging results the Government announced in March for the public sector to achieve over the next five years.
“It’s about delivering what New Zealanders really want and expect from their public services. These targets are not a wish-list – they are a to-do list,” Mr Key says.
“We want to get further traction on difficult issues like reducing crime, reducing long-term welfare dependency and reducing educational underachievement.
“Some of these targets are very aspirational – in fact, some of them will be extremely difficult to achieve. But I make absolutely no apology for having high expectations and wanting New Zealanders to get the most out of their public services,” Mr Key says.
“We want targets that are going to stretch the ability of the public sector to deliver them, and will force change. This is not an exercise in ticking boxes.
“For example, we have set a target to reduce the number of people on a working-age benefit for more than 12 months by more than 20,000 or 30 per cent – from 78,000 to 55,000.”
Delivering better public services within tight financial constraints to New Zealanders is one of the Government’s key priorities for its second term. The targets announced today will help deliver that goal.
Mr English, who is leading the Better Public Services reforms with State Services Minister Jonathan Coleman, says this move is about making government agencies work more closely together to deliver the results that matter most to New Zealanders.
“We want to change the way the public sector works so it is more focused and organised around delivering results, rather than just outputs.
“We’re making public sector leaders accountable for achieving things that make a real difference to the lives of New Zealanders, not just managing a department or agency.
“We also want to make it simpler for New Zealanders to interact with government. Doing business with government, and getting information from government agencies, should be easy.
“This is a fundamental shift that requires different thinking. We are not a government that thinks spending more money on something is an end in itself. We are a government that thinks getting results is what’s really important.
“This is also about getting greater efficiency and value-for-money out of our public sector. That’s important because the public sector is about a quarter of the economy so it has a big influence on our overall economic performance.
“Progress towards these targets will be reported publicly so New Zealanders can judge for themselves how well we are doing,” Mr English says.
The targets are:
Reducing long-term welfare dependency
1. Reduce the number of people who have been on a working age benefit for more than 12 months
Read more about this result here.
Supporting vulnerable children
2. Increase participation in early childhood education.
3. Increase infant immunisation rates and reduce the incidence of rheumatic fever.
4. Reduce the number of assaults on children.
Read more about these results here
Boosting skills and employment
5. Increase the proportion of 18 year olds with NCEA level 2 or equivalent qualification.
6. Increase the proportion of 25-34 year olds with advanced trade qualifications, diplomas and degrees (at level 4 or above).
Read more about these results here
Reducing crime
7. Reduce the rates of total crime, violent crime and youth crime.
8. Reduce reoffending.
Read more about these results here
Improving interaction with government
9. New Zealand businesses have a one-stop online shop for all government advice and support they need to run and grow their business.
10. New Zealanders can complete their transactions with the Government easily in a digital environment.
Read more about these results here
These are not easy targets but they are important ones if New Zealand is to be a healthier, better educated, more secure and wealthier country.
Setting the targets, announcing them and reporting on the results publicly is not without risk for the government.
But it is good to see it having the courage to set measurable goals for the public service which provide voters with something on which they can judge the government.
Homepaddock 