A former high-ranking public servant thinks Governments in New Zealand need to improve their performance.
Len Cook, who is now turned bureaucratic watchdog, says politicians have imposed repeated restructuring on government departments, but have not lifted their own game.
Mr Cook now heads the Institute of Public Administration. He told an audience at Otago University that politicians in New Zealand focus on short term goals with little shelf life.
He said they do little to prepare the country for often self-evident problems in the future, which brings a real cost.
Mr Cook added that people need some kind of independent assurance that trustworthy decisions are being made on their behalf by the politicians they elect.
