Government needs to explain big spend on consultants

Despite a load of tough talk National has failed to deliver on its repeated promises to make the public service more efficient, with Kiwi taxpayers now paying more in order to get less, Labour’s State Services spokesperson Chris Hipkins says.

“Given the arbitrary cap the government introduced to prevent public sector agencies from hiring new staff, a blowout on the cost of consultants was inevitable.

“Anecdotally, we’re hearing stories of people being made redundant, taking their pay-out, then being hired back within weeks on consultants rates. That’s not more efficient, it’s just wasteful,” Chris Hipkins said.

“Labour supports a greater focus on efficiency and achieving outcomes in the public service, but the National government is going totally the wrong way about it.

“We should be focused first and foremost on identifying what Kiwis want from their public services and how best to deliver on that, not - as National is doing - spending inordinate amounts of time and money on working out where to cut and what to sell.

“Massive increases in consultant spending by agencies such as the Ministry of Arts Culture and Heritage, Foreign Affairs and Trade, Treasury and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry all need to be explained.

“National can’t duck responsibility for this – it has promised a more efficient, more responsive public service.

“Now it’s time to explain why spending millions of dollars on consultants is doing to deliver that,” Chris Hipkins said.