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The following tables provide a summary of the main information contained in the sections on outcomes and capability, and in the Statement Of Forecast Service Performance.
The government’s three key priority areas are:
Cabinet has laid down these three areas as
its priorities for the next decade.
DPMC will support the Prime Minister in carrying forward these priority areas by working with The Treasury, the State Services Commission, and other key departments, so that the government’s priorities are delivered.
Policy advice and secretariat and co-ordination services (includes Contributing Outcomes 1, 2, 4 and 5)
We Provide:
Support services to the Governor-General and maintenance of the
two Government Houses
(includes Contributing Outcome 3)
We Provide:
Intelligence assessments on developments overseas (includes Contributing Outcomes 1 and 4)
We Provide:
The key capabilities needed to achieve DPMC’s outcomes and outputs are: high-performing staff; agency credibility; good networks and working relationships; effective infrastructure; and strong information management.
Much of DPMC’s work does not lend itself to direct cost-effectiveness analysis (cost per unit of benefit obtained). The department’s outcomes do not have readily quantifiable measures of impact and are more likely to be realised incrementally over a period of years from a cumulative series of interventions to which DPMC contributes, sometimes with the assistance of other agencies. In relation to output delivery, the Statement of Forecast Service Performance (on pages 15-18) outlines the measures against which DPMC assesses its output performance.
Cabinet and the Prime Minister are the centre of government. The Prime Minister plays a key role in maintaining and co-ordinating the government by overseeing its general policy direction, and by chairing and leading Cabinet. Ministers work together as Cabinet, and in Cabinet committees, to discuss and take decisions on a wide range of matters. DPMC, along with the wider public service, supports the Prime Minister and ministers by ensuring they are provided with good information and advice to enable sound decision making.
DPMC has a key role to play in promoting the effective operation of the public service to ensure the Prime Minister and Cabinet are supported in carrying out the government’s business in a collective, well co-ordinated and organised way. This role is primarily the responsibility of the Policy Advisory Group, the Domestic and External Security Group (DESG), and the Cabinet Office, although the External Assessments Bureau (EAB) also plays a part.
The Policy Advisory Group and the Domestic and External Security Group both provide policy advice to the Prime Minister. These two groups are responsible for ensuring state sector support for effective Cabinet decision making. To do this, they provide comment and assistance to ensure that final Cabinet papers provide a good basis for ministers’ collective decision making. They comment on draft papers and provide briefings to the Prime Minister across all areas of government business (and other areas when relevant). They help departments make links with other agencies working on related issues, and they attempt to ensure that officials do not lose sight of broader government priorities – in particular, the three government themes and associated priorities. They help remove bottlenecks in the flow of departmental policy making. The two groups also participate in a wide range of officials’ committees, attend Cabinet committee meetings in an advisory and support capacity, co-ordinate follow-up work, and, where appropriate, inform officials of the wider context in which decisions have been made. Partly as a result of the development of the government’s three themes, these two groups will have an increasing role in co-ordinating and monitoring the development and implementation of government policy.
The Cabinet Office administers the Cabinet system, including a range of requirements that ensure issues are presented to Cabinet in a way that supports good decision making. It gives advice and support to ministers, ministerial staff, and public sector agencies about these requirements; and it works proactively with agencies to improve the quality of Cabinet papers. It supplies information and briefings on Cabinet procedures to departments and ministerial staff. It records Cabinet decisions accurately, and circulates them promptly to relevant ministers and departments. It also maintains a record of all Cabinet decisions, as these decisions authoritatively set out executive government policy and its development over time. The Cabinet Office also helps co-ordinate the government’s legislative programme; and it supports decision making by the Prime Minister and senior ministers on the awarding of honours, arranging the ceremonies at which citizens receive these honours.
The External Assessments Bureau (EAB) contributes to this outcome through assessments and reports to the Prime Minister and other key ministers on external developments that could significantly affect New Zealand’s interests.
Finally, DPMC maintains an ability to respond rapidly at an administrative level to new policy issues that require close monitoring by senior ministers. These issues may, on occasion, require the addition of more staff. Recent examples of this “troubleshooting” and issues-management role include the Foreshore and Seabed Group and the Climate Change Office, both of which were housed within DPMC.
At the heart of New Zealand’s democratic and political system is stable and continuing executive government that is accountable to an elected House of Representatives. Executive government comprises the Governor-General, the Prime Minister, other ministers of the Crown, and the public service. The purpose of this contributing outcome is to provide the administrative support for the ongoing conduct of government business within accepted conventions and practices, and to ensure the smooth transfer of power between successive administrations, Prime Ministers, ministers, and Governors-General.
As the recognised source of expert knowledge on the systems of Cabinet and executive government, the Cabinet Office is the department’s primary contributor to this outcome. In carrying out its role, the Cabinet Office also works with the Crown Law Office, the Parliamentary Counsel Office, the Ministry of Justice, the State Services Commission, and The Treasury.
The Cabinet Office provides impartial advice to the Governor-General, the Prime Minister and ministers on the constitutional issues and procedures that support the conduct and continuity of executive government. It ensures that constitutional procedures such as the appointment of ministers are well managed and administered correctly, and it provides policy advice on constitutional issues that have implications for executive government.
Maintaining the trust of ministers and other stakeholders, and maintaining its reputation for integrity and judgement, is critical to the operation of the Cabinet Office. It is rigorous in maintaining impartiality between administrations, agencies, and individual ministers. Knowledge and expertise in the Cabinet Office is developed and shared, so that it can respond quickly to new issues.
The process for the change of Governor-General is also administered by the Cabinet Office: this will be a key 2006/07 activity in support of this contributing outcome. The outgoing Governor-General, the Honourable Dame Silvia Cartwright, will be farewelled and the incoming Governor-General, Judge Anand Satyanand, sworn in. In the coming three years the Cabinet Office will continue its usual range of support services on constitutional matters – such as advising the Prime Minister, where required, on the application of the guidance in the Cabinet Manual. The Cabinet Office will also begin its preparations for the next general election.
The Cabinet Office also contributes to a wider awareness and understanding of the structures and processes of government. It does this by informing the public service – and the wider public – about the formal roles, conventions, and workings of the system of executive government. This information is published in a number of forms including the Cabinet Manual, Cabinet Office circulars, the Cabinet Office Step by Step Guide, and material on the Cabinet and Cabinet Committee workspace on the public sector intranet and on DPMC’s website (www.dpmc.govt.nz). Work to improve the accessibility and ease of use of this material is ongoing.
The Governor-General represents The Queen as New Zealand’s Head of State. The Governor-General exercises important interlinking constitutional, ceremonial, and community duties and roles.
The Governor-General’s constitutional duties ensure the legitimacy and continuity of government. They include: summoning, suspending and dissolving Parliament; assenting to Bills; appointing ministers; presiding over meetings of the Executive Council; and being Commander-in-Chief of the New Zealand Defence Force. In exercising these constitutional powers and functions, the Governor-General is supported by the Cabinet Office and, by convention, acts on the advice of ministers in almost all situations. As Clerk of the Executive Council, the Secretary of the Cabinet is responsible for liaison between the Governor-General and the government of the day.
The key role of the Governor-General within the New Zealand system of government contributes to the overall outcome of “good government”, and requires efficient and effective support. Maintaining the credibility and status of the office of the Governor-General is integral to the effective performance of vice-regal constitutional, ceremonial, and community roles. This year will see the appointment of a new Governor-General. To make this change as seamless as possible, particularly during the initial period of appointment, the focus of Government House staff will be to provide continuing skilled and responsive support.
The ceremonial role of the Governor-General is broad. It includes: opening new sessions of Parliament; welcoming visiting heads of state; receiving the credentials of foreign diplomats; holding investitures where honours awarded to New Zealanders are formally presented; and participating in public commemorations such as ANZAC Day. In assisting the promotion of New Zealand interests overseas through state visits by the Governor-General, Government House works closely with the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
The Governor-General provides non-partisan leadership in the community through a programme of speeches, patronage of many charities and community groups, attendance at special events and functions, and visiting specific interest groups throughout New Zealand. During the year the Governor-General usually attends about 500 community-based events.
The two Government Houses in Wellington and Auckland provide venues for the many constitutional, ceremonial, and community functions undertaken by the Governor-General. These are historic properties and must be maintained to meet the required heritage standards. In Wellington this year, exploratory work is to be undertaken to determine the extent of restorative projects that will be phased over the next three years, ensuring that the House is in a fitting condition to celebrate its centenary in 2010.
For more information see www.gov-gen.govt.nz
Domestic and international risks to New Zealand’s wellbeing can include threats to national security, terrorist activities, major accidents, natural disasters, the loss of essential infrastructure, and physical and bio-security hazards. These can encompass terrorist threats to New Zealand citizens when they are abroad, major floods at home, and the threat of an influenza pandemic.
“Good government” for DPMC means assessing, preparing for, monitoring, and responding to such risks in a timely and structured way. The External Assessments Bureau (EAB) and the Domestic and External Security Group (DESG) have the prime responsibility for this contributing outcome through their advisory, planning, co-ordination, assessment, and reporting functions.
The responsibility of the External Assessments Bureau is to increase New Zealand’s understanding of the external environment. The reports produced by the External Assessments Bureau are intended to inform the Prime Minister, other senior ministers, senior officials, and New Zealand’s diplomatic representatives overseas about external political, economic, security, strategic, environmental, scientific, and biographic developments of significance to New Zealand’s national interests. The External Assessments Bureau’s reports are as objective as possible and do not contain policy advice or advocacy.
The responsibility of the Domestic and External Security Group is to maintain security responsiveness and co-ordination. DESG promotes the use of effective planning and inter-agency co-operation to manage security risks. This work covers reducing the possibility of a particular adverse event happening, lessening the severity of its impact if it occurs, and dealing with the consequences of an actual event. The Group has a centre-of-government function in overseeing the preparation of overarching national strategies, providing leadership in policy development, and co-ordinating the work of other departments and agencies in developing their capacity to deal with specific security risks. DESG has a particular responsibility for co-ordinating the activities of the New Zealand intelligence community. It provides support for the Cabinet Committee on Domestic and External Security Co-ordination and the Officials’ Committee for Domestic and External Security Co-ordination (ODESC), an inter-departmental body chaired by the Chief Executive of DPMC.
These responsibilities will continue in 2006/07. The External Assessments Bureau and the Domestic and External Security Group will remain responsive to emerging issues and risks. Mechanisms for this include the system of watch groups chaired by DESG: it convenes these watch groups, sometimes at short notice, to review operational responses to – and intelligence support for – situations as they arise.
The External Assessments Bureau requires close relationships with other departments and agencies, in particular the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the agencies involved in the New Zealand intelligence community. The Domestic and External Security Group works across the public service issue by issue with agencies such as the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the Ministry of Fisheries, the Ministry of Health, the New Zealand Customs Service, the New Zealand Police, the New Zealand Defence Force, the Department of Labour, and The Treasury.
The primary common purpose of the central agencies is a shared or mutual interest in a high-performing, trusted and accessible state sector. Central agencies have a key role to play in aligning the activities of the state sector with government’s goals and in making sure that ministers receive the best possible advice before making decisions.
Each central agency has its own key responsibilities, but it also requires contributions from the other two agencies. One of the main functions of DPMC is to support the process of collective decision making, and to convey Cabinet’s decisions to the relevant ministers and officials. DPMC has a role in conveying the government’s priorities to officials, which involves a focus on the strategic themes of: economic transformation; families– young and old; and national identity. DPMC also ensures that the Cabinet receives well conceived and co-ordinated advice. The Treasury exists to monitor and manage the financial affairs of the government and to provide economic and fiscal policy advice. As such, The Treasury is the key agency for supporting ministers in their balancing of priorities through the budget process, and for providing insight into the effectiveness of government agencies and their interventions. The State Services Commission (SSC) exists to appoint and manage the public service’s chief executives, to provide leadership across the state sector, and to ensure that state servants are appropriately focused on addressing the government’s priorities. These roles give the SSC opportunities to use performance management in encouraging good performance and in giving expression to expectations about standards of work.
Over the last two years there have been some good examples of new and innovative approaches to working together, such as the development of an approach that enables the central agencies to identify emerging performance problems within agencies at an early stage.
In 2006 and 2007 there will be a focus on the continuous improvement of the state sector.
The central agencies are reviewing and improving their monitoring of the state sector and their advice to ministers on the sector’s performance. This requires the central agencies to consider their individual and collective roles in the management of state sector performance. Current areas of opportunity for improvement may include: