Spinning govt yarn costs $47m
Government agencies have hired more new communications staff in five years than all the journalists working at Television New Zealand, Radio New Zealand, the Sunday Star-Times and the Dominion Post newspapers put together.
In the five years to July 2007, government agencies employed 210 additional communications staff and contractors, taking the total communications workforce to 448. That included 37 staffers in ministers offices.
The total bill was $47 million, according to answers to parliamentary questions put by National.
National state services spokesman Gerry Brownlee said Labour was gearing up to use the government publicity machine as part of its re-election campaign.
This is an extraordinary expansion of the governments ability to deliver its message. This must make Labour the most spun government in history, he said.
With the passing of the Electoral Finance Bill, the government had loaded the deck in its own favour. The bill limits advertising by political parties for the whole of 2008, and puts a cap of $120,000 on spending by outside groups. However, government communications and advertising campaigns are not constrained.
The big spend is now going to be with the government, and they have made sure they have the infrastructure to deliver on that. Here we have a small army employed at a cost of nearly $50 million, all pushing positive government messages, he said.
Government Duty Minister Rick Barker refused to be interviewed directly. He issued a brief comment through a spokesman.
This is more huff and puff from Gerry Brownlee and the National Party and it is simply posturing. The State Services Act makes it clear that departments are required to act in a politically neutral way, he said.
The Ministry of Social Development topped the list with 54 communications staff and contractors, making it bigger than Radio New Zealands entire workforce of journalists.
Ministry spokeswoman Bronwyn Saunders said many of those staff were not media staff, but were meeting a growing public demand for web-based services through the ministrys 18 websites. The ministry had also taken on new functions such as Working for Families and the campaign against family violence and youth gangs.
It is worth remembering that in its work, the ministry will at some stage touch the life of every New Zealander, said Saunders.
Only 15 of the 54 communications staffers dealt with media or public relations issues.
Another 20 were web and publications staff responsible for brochures, corporate documents, staff communications and management of events. She said the high number of communications staff also reflected that the Ministry of Social Development was the biggest government department, with 10,000 staff.
The biggest spender on communication contractors and staff was the Ministry of Education, with 70% of the $6.6m it spent going on contractors.
Canterbury University journalism school head Jim Tully said government and corporate public relations staff were growing as newsrooms were shrinking.
The growth is indicative of a much greater determination to put the best possible spin and to influence the media generally, he said.
There are 10 times as many government communications staff as there were 25 years ago, despite a smaller public service.
Until 1984, communications staff for all government departments and ministers were provided by New Zealand Tourism and Publicity.
Former PSA representative at NZTP Bethany McLennan said in the early 1980s there were fewer than 50 press officers in total.
