This is edition 2025/159 of the Ten@10 newsletter.
Hi all,
This is the Ten@10, where I collate and summarise ten news items you generally won't see in the mainstream media.
Enjoy!
1. Time to Unscramble Government
Roger Partridge
- 🏛️ Bloated Executive Structure — New Zealand has 81 ministerial portfolios across 28 ministers and 43 departments, far exceeding comparable nations like Ireland, Norway, and Singapore.
- 🌀 Fragmented Responsibilities — Complex issues like housing are divided among at least six different portfolios, making coordinated policy and accountability difficult.
- ⛔ Policy Gridlock — Proposals requiring multiple ministerial approvals face numerous veto points, slowing decisions and creating “glacial progress.”
- 📊 Fiscal Impact — International research links more budget-holding ministers to higher deficits; NZ’s rising ministerial numbers and public spending reflect this trend.
- 📑 New Report Released — The New Zealand Initiative’s report “Unscrambling Government” proposes major reforms to restore efficiency and accountability.
- ✂️ Proposed Reforms —
- Reduce 81 portfolios → 15–20 coherent groupings.
- Introduce statutory junior minister roles for delegated responsibility.
- Cut 43 departments → ~20, aligned with streamlined portfolios.
- 🏗️ Concrete Examples —
- A Minister for the Built Environment would handle housing, transport, infrastructure, and building regulation together.
- A Home Affairs Minister would oversee immigration, communities, and civic functions.
- A Commerce Ministry would focus solely on business and innovation.
- 🌏 Global Comparisons —
- Ireland: 15 Cabinet members since 1937.
- Norway: 20 ministers, 17 ministries.
- Singapore: 18 ministers, 16 ministries — one of the world’s most effective models.
- 🇦🇺 Australian Precedent — In 1987, PM Bob Hawke cut federal portfolios from 28 → 16 and merged departments, delivering faster decisions and enduring reforms retained even under John Howard.
- 🎯 Key Benefits — Streamlined ministries would improve accountability, speed up policy, and allow ministers to develop deeper expertise.
- ⚖️ Coalition Compatibility — Senior and junior roles provide flexibility without inflating the total number of ministers, keeping accountability intact.
- 🚧 Main Obstacle — Political will, not technical feasibility. Incremental decisions created today’s mess; bold leadership is needed to reverse it.
- 🔄 Bottom Line — NZ’s sprawling Cabinet undermines accountability, fiscal discipline, and policy delivery. Comprehensive executive reform is urgent to build a government fit for modern challenges.
