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Public Law and Legal Theory

2013

Constitutions

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

The Importance Of Free And Frank Advice From The Public Service, Matthew S. R. Palmer Qc Nov 2013

The Importance Of Free And Frank Advice From The Public Service, Matthew S. R. Palmer Qc

The Hon Justice Matthew Palmer

There has been a systematic diminution in the quality of policy advice in the New Zealand executive government between about 1998 and 2008. That has been associated with a diminution in the willingness of public servants to provide free and frank advice. Leadership at senior political and bureaucratic levels is required to address this as well as cultural change throughout the policy capacity of the New Zealand public service.

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Ministerial Responsibility And Chief Executive Accountability: The Implications Of The Better Public Services Reform Programme, Matthew S. R. Palmer Qc Apr 2013

Ministerial Responsibility And Chief Executive Accountability: The Implications Of The Better Public Services Reform Programme, Matthew S. R. Palmer Qc

The Hon Justice Matthew Palmer

This paper examines the current state of the constitutional convention of ministerial responsibility and its public service corollaries in New Zealand. It assesses the implications for them of the latest reform initiative in the New Zealand public service: Better Public Services. It concludes that the Better Public Services initiative does not disturb the constitutional underpinnings of the public service. But neither does it address the problem of the paucity of free and frank advice and wider problems of the quality of policy advice. Addressing those problems requires commitment by Ministers and leadership in the public service.

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