This Statement of Intent takes account of the independent statutory responsibilities of the State Services Commissioner as well as other programmes. It recognises both business as usual and major, one-off initiatives, some of which will place heavy demands on the Commission in 2002/03. For example:
- the delivery of the government portal near the beginning of the year is a major milestone in implementation of the e-government strategy;
- the implementation of the recommendations arising from the Review of the Centre will begin to show results during the year;
- the senior management development strategy moves from design to implementation; and
- the values and standards programme will expand beyond the Public Service into the State sector.
This year is an election year. This will place particular demands on the Commission to help the State sector respond to the requirements and priorities of the government of the day while maintaining New Zealand's long tradition of a politically neutral Public Service.
Many things influence the Public Service environment. It is easy to concentrate on responding to issues as they arise. It is more difficult to identify and respond to changing expectations of citizens. As stated in the last Annual Report of the State Services Commissioner, the view of government from the regions is very different from the Wellington view. Knowing and understanding the needs and expectations of citizens will become increasingly important for the Commission as it seeks to develop a responsive, values based, 'citizen aware' State sector.
The full work programme of the Commission is set out in the Output Agreement between the Minister of State Services and the State Services Commissioner.
