communicating with government
This part will look at communicating with:
- central government (Ministers, Members of Parliament)
- local government (regional, city and district councils).
communicating with central government
Some of the more common ways of having your say with central government include via:
- lobbying
- a submission to a select committee
- parliamentary inquiries
- petitions to Parliament
- official information requests
- talking or writing a letter to a Minister or your local MP (Member of Parliament).
Tip
These options for communicating with politicians will be dealt with next. However, for detailed information on all of these and more, refer to www.govt.nz/participate.
Lobbying
Lobbying is essentially a planned effort to influence political decision-making (at both a central and local government level) through public relations (PR). Some lobby groups (such as the Business Roundtable) are rich and powerful and able to put a lot of resources into lobbying. Community groups seldom have much in the way of resources, but they do have the most important resource of all — people, and they can be as powerful as money.
Successful lobbying usually involves both direct and indirect lobbying. Direct lobbying involves meeting face-to-face with political leaders and others of influence, discussing proposals and arguing your cause (see direct lobbying checklist). Indirect lobbying can involve bringing pressure to bear through the media so that an issue receives public attention, in preparation for a direct approach. It may also involve visiting opposition party members or possible competitors in business.
Lobbying is important because:
- what you have to say can make a difference to policies and legislation
- it is a legitimate part of a democratic system — allowing people to have their say
- it provides a vehicle for you to communicate your kaupapa, philosophy, values or beliefs
- your perspective and knowledge is valuable and unique. Often MPs, policy-makers, councillors, officials need to be informed by people working at the "grass roots" from which they tend to be removed.
Direct lobbying checklist
The following checklist can be used as a guide to directly lobbying someone, including a Minister or local MP:
- make appointments with those you want to lobby and ask how much time is available so you can use it to your best advantage
- have two or three well-briefed speakers
- prepare a written summary of your case, your organisation's origin and credentials and its area of work, refer to it at the meeting, then submit it when you depart
- agree on the order of speaking and the issues each speaker will address
- assign someone to be the record-keeper
- arrive five minutes early
- introduce your party
- note who is present and who you might best contact later
- make your most important points first
- be ready to summarise if your time is cut short
- understate your case rather than overstate it — you only want the person to agree with you, not join you
- present your case clearly
- use visual aids if possible
- be confident or at least give the appearance of confidence
- leave when you have covered all the ground
- write a note of thanks for the time you were given to present your case.
- In the case of a local Member of Parliament (MP), where electorate "clinics" are usually run on Saturdays and/or Sundays:
- make an appointment through the electorate office
- remember the meeting is more informal and probably shorter with less media interest than a Parliamentary visit
- make a particular effort to gather and summarise expressions of local support (which to an MP are potential votes)
- be as prepared as you would be for a Parliamentary visit.
Making a submission to a select committee
One of the ways you can get your voice heard by government and be part of the decision-making process, is to share your opinion on a new law (all of which start life off as a Bill) or change an old one. This is called making a submission to a select committee.
Select committees
There are 13 different subject select committees (see details below). Each of these committees has about eight MPs from different parties in Parliament on them and each focuses on one or two big national topics like "health" or "justice". There are also 5 specialist select committees (see details below) which deal more with procedural matters. The membership of select committees can change.
The current 13 subject select committees are:
- Commerce — business development, commerce, communications, consumer affairs, energy, information technology, insurance and superannuation
- Education and Science — education, education review, industry training, research, science and technology
- Finance and Expenditure — audit of the Crown's and departmental financial statements, Government finance, revenue and taxation
- Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade — customs, defence, disarmament and arms control, foreign affairs, immigration and trade
- Government Administration — civil defence, cultural affairs, fitness, sport and leisure, internal affairs, Pacific Island affairs, Prime Minister and Cabinet, racing, services to Parliament, State services, statistics, tourism, women's affairs and youth affairs
- Health
- Justice and Electoral — Crown legal and drafting services, electoral matters, human rights and justice
- Law and Order — corrections, courts, criminal law, police and serious fraud
- Local Government and Environment — conservation, environment and local government
- Māori Affairs
- Primary Production — agriculture, biosecurity, fisheries, forestry, lands and land information
- Social Services — housing, senior citizens, social welfare, veterans' affairs and work and income support
- Transport and Industrial Relations— accident compensation, industrial relations, labour, occupational health and safety, transport and transport safety.
The current 5 specialist select committees are:
- Business — facilitation of House business
- Officers of Parliament — appropriations and appointments of the Auditor-General, the Ombudsmen, and the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment
- Privileges — matters of parliamentary privilege
- Regulations Review — examination of legal instruments variously known as "regulations", "delegated legislation" and "subordinate legislation" made under delegated powers in an Act of Parliament
- Standing Orders— House procedures and practices.
One of the jobs of the select committee is to examine Bills and then report back to Parliament. The select committee finds out what New Zealanders think through a public submission process. This means that anyone can see what you (or your group) have said.
How do you know what Bills are being proposed?
Most Bills are advertised in newspapers around New Zealand to encourage submissions. You can see which submissions are being called for or what submissions different organisations have made on Bills. Go to the "Select Committees" section of the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives website and click on either "submissions called for" or "submissions received" — www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz.
The submission process
A submission may be written or verbal (sometimes called oral or spoken) or a combination of both. You may speak to a written submission and it is usual to present written material to support a verbal submission. An effective and powerful submission is a simple one that sets out your own or the group's views on the subject.
Written submissions
Some useful tips for making a written submission to a select committee are:
- When select committees call for submissions, they advertise in the "public notices" section of the newspaper and also note this on the website www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz.
- Get a copy of the Bill you wish to make a submission about. You can buy this from Bennett's Government bookshops or download it from the website www.knowledge-basket.co.nz. The "explanatory note" at the start of the Bill gives useful information about what the Bill is trying to do. It is usually easier to read than the Bill itself.
- Discuss the Bill as a group. Do a bit of research. What are other people saying about it? It might be useful to plan your submission with other groups who share your views.
- Sort out the key points you wish to make about the Bill. In most cases limit this to 1 to 3 main points to keep your submission focused.
- Write your draft submission. Say:
- Who you are — give your credentials for making a submission on the Bill (it's all good public relations). Include your name and contact details.
- Whether you support or oppose the Bill — and why.
- What impact it might have on the people that you work with.
- Keep your submission short and to the point. Use sub headings for the different points you make.
- Try to be constructive — even when you totally oppose the Bill.
- Get someone else to check your submission before you send it off. Ask them to check:
- Is your message clear — does it make sense?
- Does the submission keep to the subject of the Bill?
- Does anything need to be explained more? Remember, you are the expert in your field, you can't expect the members of the select committee to know the details about your area.
- Check the spelling and grammar — it all makes an impression.
- Say whether you want to appear before the committee. This can be very useful to make a point — especially if you are based in or near Wellington or the committee is hearing submissions in your area.
- Check the closing date, how many copies you need and send it off. Remember to keep a copy — especially if you are going to appear before the committee.
Oral submissions
Some tips on appearing before a select committee and presenting an oral submission are:
- Find out who is on the committee, and, if possible what their views might be. Identify your potential allies on the committee. Your task is to help them build their argument for/against the Bill.
- If you can, go along to a meeting of the select committee and observe how it operates. A weekly schedule is posted on the www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz website. This indicates what sessions are open to the public.
- Appearing before the committee is an opportunity to give some "life" to your submission. You will be invited to present your submission and then answer questions. Keep your presentation short and:
- Introduce yourself, your group and your credentials for making a submission on this topic.
- Outline the key points in your submission very briefly, but don't go into details. Committee members will have already read your submission so it's a waste of time to read it out.
- Give an example of how this proposed legislation will affect people you work with. This adds a personal touch that can get the committee members more interested than statistics.
- Don't be put off by difficult questions — stick to your points and what you know. It's a good idea to make sure you have someone with direct fieldwork experience who can illustrate your points with anecdotes and examples that give the human dimension.
Tip
For further details on the submission process (written and verbal), refer to the booklet Making a Submission to a Parliamentary Select Committee available from the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives by:
- writing to them at Parliament Buildings, Wellington
- phoning them on (04) 471 9999
- faxing them on (04) 473 2439
- referring to their website www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz.
The Ministry of Youth Development's Aotearoa Youth Voices Tool Kit also includes a useful resource Action guide 8: Write a submission to Parliament.
Parliamentary inquiries
Select committees can also hold inquiries within their subject area in response to some community concern. They can call for public submissions and request evidence from organisations that may be the subject of the inquiry. After considering the evidence, committees may report to Parliament with findings and recommendations. The Government must respond to recommendations within 90 days.
These parliamentary inquiries vary in nature according to the relevant concerns at the time. Examples of some recent inquiries include:
- inquiry into obesity and type two diabetes in New Zealand (report published 26 April 2006 by Health Select Committee)
- ;
- inquiry into the quality and care of services provision for disabled people and how they might be improved (report published 25 August 2006 by the Social Services Select Committee).
Tip
You can find out what inquiries are open for submission by referring to the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives website (under Other Business Before Select Committees) www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz.
Petitions to parliament
People can request that the House of Representatives take action on a matter of public policy or law, or to address a personal grievance, by presenting a petition to the House, through their local Member of Parliament (MP).
A petition is a document signed by one person or many people. The petition is referred to the appropriate committee, which decides whether to seek submissions from affected people or organisations. If the committee reports to the House with recommendations, the Government must respond within 90 days.
Petitions don't generally contain the same large amount of supporting evidence as a submission. However petitions should:
- have the front page signed
- have each page containing signatures headed with the petitioner's request
- use respectful, moderate, and to-the-point language
- not have any documents attached to it.
Official information requests
What is official information?
Official information is any information held by the Government, including:
- Ministers
- government departments
- local authorities, territorial and regional councils and community boards
- state-owned enterprises
- educational institutions, including Boards of Trustees
- public hospitals.
Tip
A full list of the organisations you can request information from is listed in the Directory of Official Information available from public libraries or Ministry of Justice website — www.justice.govt.nz.
The law
The two Acts governing access to official information are:
- the Official Information Act 1982
- the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987.
The guiding principle is that information must be made available unless good reason exists under the Acts for withholding it.
The process
Anyone can make a request for information from those people and organisations listed above and the process is the same for all of them.
Some useful tips on the official information request process are:
- It's best to put your question in writing and explain clearly what you are asking. Remember to include your address so they know where to send the reply.
- All requests should be answered within 20 working days. If it will take longer, the organisation or Minister will tell you about the delay and the reason for it.
- Generally, the first hour of time spent processing a request and the first 20 pages of photocopying, are free. A fee may be charged but this has to be reasonable and related to the cost of providing the answer to your request.
Tip
For more details on official information requests see the following links:
Writing to politicians
Every day politicians make decisions about things that affect your community and your life. If you want them to make decisions that will be good for you, grab a pen and paper and let them know what you think.
You could write a letter by yourself or you could organise a letter-writing campaign.
The first thing you need to work out is who the best person is to write to.
- Electorate MPs are usually interested in what people from their electorate think about an issue.
- Cabinet Ministers are the decision-makers in the Government and have areas of responsibility (portfolios). So write to the Minister who best covers the issue you are concerned about.
- The Prime Minister (PM) is the leader of the Government. Write to the PM about big national and international issues.
The relevant contact details for these people can be found in various places.
- Your local electorate MPs' contact details are available at www.clerk.parliament.govt.nz.
- Cabinet Ministers, their portfolios and contact details are available at www.beehive.govt.nz.
- You can write to any MP, Minister or the Prime Minister for FREE at:
Full name)
Freepost Parliament
PO Box 18888
Wellington.
Some important things to remember when writing to politicians include:
- explain why a particular issue is important to you and your community or New Zealanders as a whole
- don't think that the politician will already know everything
- be clear and to the point
- be constructive
- always use facts
- make sure that you state your name and address, so that they can write back to you.
communicating with local government
Local government relationships
While central government is mainly concerned with national issues, local government has a local or regional focus. Local government (which includes regional, city and district councils) has responsibilities for community "well-being" (which covers social, economic, cultural and environmental aspects). However, everything that local government does is within the legislative framework established and maintained by Parliament.
Ways of having your say
There are different ways that you can have your say on local government matters. These include:
- making a submission on things such as:
- a council plan (including the long term council community plan or annual plan)
- publicly notified resource consents
- council consultation processes
- other proposals
- official information requests (same process as detailed above for central government)
- attending public council meetings
- direct lobbying.
Long Term Council Community Plans (LTCCP)
The LTCCP is the key long term planning tool for councils and it sets out a council's priorities in the medium to long term. It outlines how the council intends to contribute to community outcomes and it provides the main opportunity for the community to participate in local decision-making.
The LTCCP is the primary planning document against which annual plans and annual reports are considered and against which communities can gauge whether or not councils are on track in terms of achieving the aims outlined through the community outcomes processes. Every three years, citizens have the opportunity to express their views on the LTCCP.
Annual plan
The annual plan process focuses on year-to-year budgets. Councils prepare an annual plan in each of the two years between LTCCP reviews, and set out in them what the council plans to do in the next twelve months to move towards achieving its goals. These plans are adopted before the commencement of the financial year in July, following a submission process.
Annual report
The annual report tells the community whether the council has done what the LTCCP said the council intended to do. The report also provides details of what has been spent, as well as indicating what progress the council has made towards achieving community outcomes. Annual reports must be adopted by 31 October each year.
Submissions
The submission procedures involved, and the relevant forms to be completed, are set out on your local council's website. Often there are online forms available on which to make your submission e.g. on publicly notified applications for resource consent. There may also be online survey forms available to be used for different circumstances (see your local council website for details).
Attending public council meetings
Anyone can attend any public meetings of the council or its committees. Councils meet as regularly as they consider appropriate for the issues facing their communities. They publish a monthly schedule of their ordinary council and committee meetings. These are usually found in the public notices of local newspapers and on the council's website. The public can be excluded from public meetings in certain circumstances.
Lobbying
- To lobby council officers, use much the same process as for a local MP.
- Make a preliminary visit to a council meeting to see who is most likely to be effective in your situation, or to hear a debate about the subject of your concern.
- Do some research to find out who is taking an active interest and what position or opinion they already hold.
Tip
Most councils include copies of proposals currently out for consultation and the relevant consultation procedures for having your say on their website, or they are available from the council offices. See Councils A-Z at www.localcouncils.govt.nz for contact details.
Monitoring of local government performance
It is useful to know that there are a number of central government agencies involved with monitoring local government's performance in a number of roles. These roles include the handling of complaints about the activities and operation of local government. For example:
- The Department of Internal Affairs provides information about local government to Ministers, councils and the public.
- The Office of the Ombudsmen will investigate complaints against local authorities if someone thinks they have been treated unfairly by a local authority.
- The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment considers complaints from people about a local authority in terms of any decision it has made relating to environmental issues.
Tip
Refer to the respective websites of the above central government agencies for further information on how to get involved in these monitoring procedures.
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