More bureaucrats doesn't equal more productivity - Labour proved it

“The opposition's response to a smaller public service has been absolutely dismal,” says ACT Leader David Seymour. "Their insistence that a smaller headcount must mean fewer services reveals what they really think: that it's impossible to get a productivity increase in the public sector.

“The irony is that Labour already proved headcounts don’t drive productivity. Between 2017 and 2023, Labour grew the public service by 34%. Outcomes did not improve, let alone by 34%.

“The Government plans to bring the headcount back to the same share of the population as it was in 2017, by 2029. By that point we'll have had 12 years of improvements in technology, systems and institutional knowledge.

“If the public sector can't reach the level of productivity it managed 12 years earlier, what hope is there for the rest of the country?

“Outside of Wellington, improvements in productivity and efficiency are the norm. Households and businesses have found ways to do more with less. It's reasonable to ask the same of the agencies they fund.

“Productivity gains won't come from AI alone. Just yesterday, I released a report revealing New Zealand has 267 regulators. There is so much complexity and overlap in government systems that can be simplified and streamlined.

“If we don't actively work to streamline government, we lock in a permanently larger and more expensive state, funded by working New Zealanders who are themselves doing more with less.

“This is one reason people no longer feel a connection between effort and reward. They try to get ahead, and government just gets more expensive and takes more of what they earn.”