$55m price tag for reviews, inquiries
‘‘We said that we wanted to be a Government that did things differently.’’
A bumper number of Government working groups, reviews and inquiries has a $55 million price tag – with some consultants raking in $1400 a day.
An analysis by Stuff puts the number of reviews at 31, with 10 inquiries, and 27 working groups.
The National Party puts the cost even higher – with a $114m price tag for 122 working groups and 45 reviews. Leader Simon Bridges says that’s ‘‘a slow death by consultants’’.
His party’s costing, released today, includes the establishment of government departments like the Pike River Recovery Agency and the Social Investment Agency, and reviews that are required by legislation or enacted by the previous government.
The Government has pushed back, saying it counts 38 reviews. Of those, 29 are costed with a $34m price tag. It says that in the long-run, it works out at four cents for every $100 of government spending.
Outsourcing decision-making to panellists is generating some hefty fees. Former Ombudsman Ron Paterson will earn $1400 a day chairing an inquiry into mental health and addiction. Retired Supreme Court Judge Sir Terence Arnold will get the same for leading the year-long inquiry into controversial Operation Burnham. Former prime minister Geoffrey Palmer will net $1300 a day for the inquiry into Defence Force actions.
Ex-governor general Sir Anand Satyanand will be paid $1400 for each day he works chairing the Royal Commission into state care abuse. Ex-Labour finance minister Michael Cullen is getting a daily $1062 fee for heading up the Tax Working Group. And Helen Clark’s former chief of staff, Heather Simpson, will get the same for leading a review into the health and disability system.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern made no apology for seeking advice.
‘‘They are not consultants – by and large the people that we are accessing are members of the public to get a user’s voice, or they are expert in their field. I’m proud that we are using that. We said that we wanted to be a Government that did things differently, that would collaborate to find answers to some of our really difficult problems.’’
Some of the costs are significant. A review of the electricity sector will cost $1.5m, an examination of NCEA $3.5m. The mental health inquiry will cost $6.5m and the inquiry into abuse in state care just over $12m.
Ardern said there was a lot for her Government to fix.
‘‘These aren’t things being done because everything is fine. Where we have decided to take a second look, it’s because something isn’t working.’’
Bridges said the Government had an ‘‘obsession’’ with advisory groups and the ‘‘real cost comes in the form of lost opportunities’’.
‘‘While staffers in the prime minister’s office get plum roles reviewing the health system, designated mental health and Ma¯ ori development funding have been cut by $100m. While former Labour ministers are being paid big bucks to run panels, children’s camps in Roxburgh are being shut down. And, while Clare Curran sets up an advisory group to recommend the establishment of a commission to recommend distribution of public media funding, education spending promises are being broken by the millions.’’
ACT leader David Seymour wasn’t concerned by the costs.
‘‘Getting policy advice is not a bad thing, and sometimes you have got to put these things in perspective,’’ he said. ‘‘Say the cost is $100m, well the Government is an $80 billion outfit in revenues . . . what business in New Zealand would not spend one eight-hundredth of its revenue on strategy and R&D? That’s effectively what it is.’’