More competitive Public Service staffing advocated

Press, 21 April 1986, Page 19

More competitive Public Service staffing advocated

PA Wellington The head of the Treasury’s financial management support services, Mr David Shand, has called for big changes to the Public Service appointment system. The Public Service should be opened to outside appointments, he said. Rewards for good performances were inadequate and Ministers were entitled to be involved in the appointment of departmental heads. Mr Shand, a former Wellington City councillor, a long-time political campaigner and Labour stalwart, was plucked from a prime job as chief director of the Victoria state Audit Office in Melbourne to head to new service.

Addressing the Institute of Public Administration in Wellington, Mr Shand said changes to the structure of the Public Service were needed if it were to implement adequately Government programmes. Only a few positions in the educational and health areas are now

open to people from outside.

“There seems no good reason why persons from the private sector should not be able to compete on the same terms for Public Service appointments,” he said.

It would increase the choice of applicants, provide additional talent in the service and discourage it from becoming too inward-looking. Inadequate rewards were now offered for good performance in the Public Service, and inadequate penalites for poor performance, he said. Promotion was the only reward for good service and non-promotion for bad.

“The concept of performance pay In particular positions based on a regular assessment of performance, should be implemented,” Mr Shand said.

The “concept of permanancy of tenure until retirement in a particular position” needed reviewing. So did the manner of

appointing permanent heads by a committee comprising representatives of the State Service Commission and other permanent heads.

“The Government or Ministers have no say in such appointments,” said Mr Shand. “I believe a Minister is entitled to be involved in appointment of his department head so as to provide proper accountability of permanent heads.

“This does not mean wholesale politicisation of the Public Service, but merely recognises the fact we are all supposed to be working on behalf of the Government of the day.” In the Australian Public Service the Prime Minister appointed all departmental heads and all senior positions were open to competition. “The experience is that this does not lead to a • highly political Public Service nor does it destroy the concept of an efficient Public Service,” Mr Shand said.