3 Government Policy
3.1 Better, Smarter Public Services for Less
Better, Smarter Public Services for Less is one of the six policy drivers for meeting the Government's economic objectives. Agencies are being asked to provide better public services at a lower cost while maintaining or improving service quality. In many cases, more substantive gains may be delivered through agency collaboration across the whole state sector or across sectors.
The Government has asked all public service entities to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of services to New Zealand citizens through taking a more citizen view of government service delivery. This increases the responsibility on chief executives and their entities to look at the potential of AOG initiatives and collaborating with other entities in the State Sector for improving efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery.
A key facilitator of AOG and cross agency work is access to funds to invest in initiatives which are likely to provide a higher return on investment than individual agency projects. The State Sector Management Framework is primarily focussed on ensuring chief executives deliver on the Government's objectives for their entity. The Government has identified the need for a specific mechanism to facilitate investments where multiple agencies are involved.
Mandate:
The Government has established a process to gain funding in order to encourage the development of AOG and cross agency initiatives with potential to harvest higher returns on investment both in savings and improved outcomes for New Zealand citizens, and to leverage potential economies of scale.
All public service entities (as listed under schedule 1 of the State Sector Act 1988) are covered by this policy. Crown entities are encouraged to apply the same principles as outlined in this guidance.
