To mark Hāpai Public’s 90th anniversary, I spoke with Kathy Young, editor of the Public Sector Journal, about the importance of Hāpai Public and some of its most significant contributions.

Last week I traced the way cabinet committees function as the coordination machinery of executive government: the institutional furniture through which political intent becomes administrative action. Across all of their iterations, the committee system addressed a persistent problem: how to get coherent decision-making across fragmented portfolios, competing priorities, and the relentless pace of the policy cycle….

I had intended to be quiet today, in honour of our shared national day. But the Prime Minister did something significant yesterday that will likely be misreported or weaponised for other political purposes, and I think it matters that one or two people call attention to it. Christopher Luxon structured his Waitangi address around the…

This post draws on research I am preparing for a journal submission, examining thirty-three years of Cabinet Office circulars to trace how successive prime ministers have configured the cabinet committee system in Aotearoa. The hypothesis I am advancing is perhaps a little too simple: that cabinet committees constitute the primary mechanism through which governments furnish…

Some months ago, I wrote about Singapore’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and his argument that plurilateral coalitions offer the practical path forward for small and middle powers unwilling and unable to choose between America and China. I want to return to that thread, and I am going to complicate it. Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney is now…

Derek Gill, Adjunct Research Fellow, Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington, and I ask in an article for Public Sector Journal whether the central agencies are rebuilding integrated coordination of the Public Service or if the talk of collaboration is just a cover for centralisation.

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

A plea from Ōtautahi. Can we stop using the phrase “bad apples” when discussing institutional problems? It is a tired cliché that has outlived whatever usefulness it might have once had. The idiom “one bad apple spoils the whole barrel” initially warned about how quickly rot spreads. Yet in contemporary discussions about institutional accountability, we’ve…

Regulation often gets a mixed reputation. Some see it as unnecessary red tape, slowing things down and making life harder for businesses and communities. Others worry that it’s too weak and fails to properly protect people and the environment. What both views have in common is frustration with regulation that seems disconnected from the real…

The collapse of the US administrative state is not just an American problem, it carries important lessons for Aotearoa New Zealand. As Washington grapples with political dysfunction and the erosion of public institutions, we should pay attention to how a weakened state apparatus invites economic instability, political turmoil, and diminished democratic control. For Aotearoa New…

Ngā Pūkenga o te Pokapū | Voices from the Centre is a series where I share reflections on Hāpai Public’s conversations with senior public servants, listening less for soundbites and more for the signals underneath: how the centre sees the system, where it’s heading, and what risks it is naming out loud. This week, Ben…

What Cave Creek Still Has To Teach Us In 1995, a Department of Conservation platform collapsed in Paparoa National Park. Fourteen people died. The cause wasn’t just poor workmanship. It was poor public management. DOC, like much of the public service at the time, was under acute fiscal pressure. After years of cuts and restructures,…

Before I begin, I want to mihi to Hon Shane Jones. In the House yesterday, he reminded us of the first four rangatira who first stepped into Parliament on behalf of Māori. He did more than recite names: he called us to remember them properly, to see them as political actors who helped shape the…

In 1995, a Department of Conservation viewing platform at Cave Creek collapsed, killing 14 people. It wasn’t just a failure of timber and nails, it was a failure of public management. After years of cuts and restructures, the Department of Conservation had been stripped of expertise, overloaded with risk, and left without the capacity to…

Regulation is like plumbing. When it works, you don’t notice it. When it doesn’t, everything gets clogged, leaks, and starts to smell. The UK has decided to grab a wrench and fix the mess, while Aotearoa New Zealand is still standing around debating whether to call a plumber. The UK government has admitted its regulatory…

Let’s talk about the latest concern over Aotearoa New Zealand’s ministerial portfolios. Some commentators suggest we should reduce them because “other countries have fewer.” This is a bit like suggesting we reorganise our national parks based on how Denmark manages its forests. Now, don’t get me wrong, the critics are onto something real. They’ve noticed…

If you’ve ever worked in or around government, you’ve probably heard the debate: what really makes agencies perform well? Is it strong leadership? A solid strategy? More funding? Or something else entirely? A year ago I decided to dig into the data to find out. Using Spearman’s correlation (S test) and partial correlation (R test),…

When we examine Aotearoa New Zealand, through the lens of its institutions, we see a remarkable pattern of action and response between the Crown and Māori that continues to shape our nation. This narrative begins in 1840, but its echoes resonate powerfully in today’s political landscape. In the initial Te Tiriti period (1840-1860), the Crown…

Australia’s Robodebt scandal has become something of a cautionary tale: and for good reason. I’ve just finished reading the commission of inquiry. It wasn’t just a case of a system gone wrong. It was a full-blown failure of politics, public service ethics and culture and basic decency. And for those of us in Aotearoa New…

In the ever-evolving landscape of public governance, a new approach is catching attention across the seas in the United Kingdom. Called mission-led governance, it promises a fresh perspective on how institutions and organizations might better serve society. The core idea is compelling: what if our public institutions could genuinely prioritize social and environmental purposes alongside—or…

If you’ve been following this blog, or I have taught you, you’ll know I’m generally sceptical about the government’s capacity to deliver meaningful change. Only because, in my view, meaningful change is delivered by and because of communities. But occasionally, I see institutions that genuinely shift the dial. Te Puni Kōkiri is one such case…

Trust in public services is on the decline. This particular measure calls attention to a measure of ‘trust’ as the state is not doing harm. In addition, confidence in public services – due to an actual experience – is flatlining. A follower on blue-sky asked me why I didn’t comment on the private sector comparator….

This is an apolitical post. It is about the effectiveness of machinery of government changes. As far as I know, the disestablishment of the Te Kōmihana Whai Hua O Aotearoa | Productivity Commission and Te Aka Whai Ora | Māori Health Authority are respectively the 501 and 502 machinery of government changes in Aotearoa-New Zealand…

If you want to understand whether a government is truly committed to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, look closely at how it values, funds, and heeds Te Puni Kōkiri – the Ministry of Māori Development. Te Puni Kōkiri holds one of the most complex and constitutionally significant roles in the entire New Zealand public service. Its…

People often ask why public institutions don’t perform as well as they should. My answer is simple. You cannot get efficiency or effectiveness unless Cabinet brings three basics to the table. First, clarity about what role government is meant to play in each policy area. Second, a strategy that cuts through the mess of today’s…

As the whakataukī suggests, not much is achieved without a plan and people to do the mahi. I’d add that not much is achieved without good governance. Here are some thoughts on public sector governance. I am not arguing for the models because they are not yet adapted in a Te Tiriti-led way. However, I…

Public institutions tend to reflect the society in which they are embedded. So it is for Aotearoa. Like it or not, in Aotearoa, our shared institutions reflect and will increasingly reflect Te Tiriti. Te Tiriti states the conditions under which Iwi, Hapū, Whānau, Whanui, Māori and the Crown agreed to cooperate in the development of…

When we talk about merit principle in the public service, it is usually treated as if it were a universal standard: a fixed measure of who is the best candidate. It often doubles as code for unelected officials get to make merit-based appointments because ministers are unable to. But merit has never worked like that….

Every few years, someone revisits the public sector reforms in Aotearoa and declares them a success story. They point to contractualism, outputs, ministerial purchasing power, purchaser-provider splits and accrual accounting. Maybe they even quote Allen Schick’s 1998 piece, “Why Most Developing Countries Should Not Try New Zealand’s Reforms,” waving it around like an endorsement. It’s…

In Aotearoa, public sector governance refers to the system by which over 4,000 public entities, including policy ministries, departments, Crown entities, state-owned enterprises (SOEs), and sui generis organisations such as the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, are directed and controlled. The system includes all processes and behaviours that enable decision-makers to lead and guide public…