Louis Houlbrooke
Campaigns Manager
New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union
The NZ Herald has reported that the Ministry for Primary Industries spent $959,700 on its brand and website update.
Most government agencies hold monopolies over the services they deliver. They don’t need flash branding to outshine competitors, because they don’t have any competitors!
Last year we revealed that the fire services spent $6.2 million on its rebrand – the most expensive government rebrand we’ve ever seen. Then there was CYFS, which became the Ministry for Vulnerable Children, which became Oranga Tamariki. Local councils have also jumped on the rebrand-wagon, with Porirua spending $98,000 on its infamous ‘smiley face’ rebrand. And even the SIS – a secret agency – spent $45,000 rebranding its vetting process.
Public Service Minister Chris Hipkins needs to halt all government rebrands by Ministerial diktat. Taxpayers will thank him.
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