Source: Radio New Zealand
Public Service Minister Judith Collins. VNP/Louis Collins
Public Service Minister Judith Collins has shrugged off pressure from coalition partner ACT over the government’s English-first policy, suggesting the matter is not a key priority.
“To be frank, right at the moment, my concern is fuel,” she told RNZ. “That’s my big focus. I’m not too worried about everything else.”
ACT MP Todd Stephenson wrote to Collins a fortnight ago warning of “growing concern” that https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/505103/act-nz-first-hesitant-to-criticise-national-over-kainga-ora-name coalition commitments] were not being “visibly implemented” across the public service.
He pointed to the Public Service Commission style guidelines which still displayed the te reo Māori phrase “Te Kāwanatanga o Aotearoa” in bold above the English “New Zealand Government”.
Speaking at Parliament on Tuesday, Collins said she had responded with a “very nice” letter noting that changes would be handled on a “case-by-case basis”, with cost front of mind.
She said she was sure the commission would issue new guidance to departments “at some stage”, but its focus – like hers – was on the current fuel crisis.
“You’ve just got to [prioritise]… what’s going to make the boat go faster, and it’s possibly not style guides.”
Collins said she did not want agencies spending significant time or money on rebranding and expected any updates to be done as cheaply as possible.
In her letter to Stephenson, she said she had instructed officials to advise her on the potential costs and timeframe for reviewing the guidelines.
She noted that public agencies and Crown entities had recently been reminded to be “to be mindful of the fiscal environment, to minimise unnecessary expenditure associated with rebranding, and to learn from other agencies’ experiences to avoid undue costs”.
In a separate statement, Stephenson said the update would not be a significant change but would set an example for the wider public service.
ACT MP Todd Stephenson. VNP / Phil Smith
“ACT does not support costly rebrands involving consultants or flash new signage and stationery. But Brooke van Velden delivered a digital-first rebrand at the Department of Internal Affairs for just $741. The Public Service Commission could follow her example.”
The National-NZ First coalition agreement included a commitment to “ensure all public service departments have their primary name in English, except for those specifically related to Māori”.
It also committed the coalition to require “public service departments and Crown entities to communicate primarily in English except those entities specifically related to Māori”.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
