Statement of Intent 1 July 2004 - 30 June 2005
Part 1: Strategic framework (continued)
Structure of the Ministry
The Defence Act 1990 created two organisations from the then Ministry of Defence: the Ministry of Defence and the New Zealand Defence Force.
Under section 24 of the Defence Act 1990, the Secretary of Defence is chief executive of the Ministry of Defence, and has specific responsibilities toward the Ministry, the New Zealand Defence Force, and New Zealand's defence and security.
Section 24 states that:
- The chief executive of the Ministry of Defence shall be known as the Secretary of Defence.
- In addition to the functions imposed on the Secretary of Defence by or under this Act or the State Sector Act 1988 or any other enactment, the Secretary shall have the following functions:
- To be the principal civilian adviser to the Minister and other Ministers:
- To formulate advice, in consultation with the Chief of Defence Force, on defence policy:
- To prepare, in consultation with the Chief of Defence Force, and submit to the Minister from time to time a defence assessment, including a review of different options capable of achieving the Government's policy goals:
- To procure, replace, or repair ships, vehicles, aircraft, and equipment used or intended for use by the Defence Force, where that procurement, replacement, or repair has major significance to military capability; and to deliver or return such ships, vehicles, aircraft, and equipment to the Defence Force:
- To arrange for the assessment and audit of the New Zealand Defence Force in relation to any function, duty, or project, and of the Ministry of Defence in relation to any function described in paragraph (d) of this subsection, as and when required by the Minister, or in accordance with a programme of audit and assessment approved by the Minister, and in accordance with the following provisions:
- The findings of the audit and assessment shall be set out in a report in the name of the person in charge of the audit and assessment, and that person shall give the report to the Secretary of Defence for submission to the Minister:
- On giving the report to the Secretary of Defence, the person in charge of the audit and assessment shall give a copy of the report to the Chief of Defence Force:
- If the Secretary of Defence disagrees with any of the contents of the report, the Secretary shall advise the Minister of the particulars with which the Secretary disagrees:
- The Chief of Defence Force may report to the Minister on any of the contents of the report.
Section 3 of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 requires the Secretary of Defence to audit the controls on hazardous substances under the control of the Minister of Defence and report the results to the Minister for the Environment and the Minister of Defence.
Figure 3 illustrates the structure and roles of the Ministry of Defence, and its links with the New Zealand Defence Force.
New job, new faces, new environment: how Corporate Division helps new employees
The first few weeks in a job often pass in a flurry of new names and faces, new systems and structures.
The Ministry of Defence Corporate Division has in place an induction package to ensure new employees are ideally equipped to be productive and enjoy their work.
So, what can new employees expect to learn in the first few weeks of their job as, for example, a policy analyst or a project manager?
The induction course they will be asked to take covers all aspects of the Ministry's work, and includes introductions to the New Zealand Defence Force, and to the workings of the Minister of Defence's office.
They receive specific briefings on the Ministry's policies, especially security policies and procedures. Training is provided on the Ministry's electronic document management system, with particular emphasis on the collective responsibility to care for the information created and retained by the Ministry.
A training session is provided on the Official Information Act, and new employees are introduced to the Ministry's performance management system. This is the time when they can make known their training or professional development needs, although employees' training requirements are reviewed regularly throughout the Ministry.
Specific roles have courses geared towards them, for example, policy analysis, which are later followed by other courses.
Health and safety issues are to the fore when a new Ministry of Defence employee's workspace set up receives an ergonomic check over.
Figure 3: The Organisation
View text equivalent of above image.
Improving joint effectiveness within Defence
We are continuing to work on implementing the decisions the Government made in March 2003 as a result of the review undertaken by Mr Don Hunn into accountabilities and structural arrangements between the Ministry of Defence and the New Zealand Defence Force.
The Government wants greater "jointness" within the New Zealand Defence Force and between the New Zealand Defence Force and the Ministry of Defence. The Government is also seeking greater cooperation and collaboration between the Ministry of Defence and the New Zealand Defence Force. As well as reinforcing and cementing in place existing initiatives designed to support cooperation and collaboration, this will be achieved by assigning accountabilities to the Secretary of Defence and the Chief of Defence Force on a sole, prime and shared basis, and directing how those accountabilities are expected to be exercised. The Secretary of Defence and the Chief of Defence Force will further develop the role of the Office of Chief Executives, so that the office: ensures that the chief executives share policy and operational information on a regular basis and make sure each are well informed; supports the provision of joint military/civilian strategic advice; supports the development of an integrated culture; and requires the chief executives to give full effect and support to the statutory role and independence of the evaluation function of the Ministry.
The Government notes that it is critical that strategic defence advice is considered within a coordinated context, including New Zealand's broader security and foreign policy responsibilities. Close consultation is required to continue with other relevant government agencies and within interagency structures for coordination.
The Ministry was directed by the Minister of Defence in August 2003 to establish a joint strategic office which supports: the provision of joint military and civilian strategic advice; integrated working relationships and a culture of information sharing and cooperation; and a working structure that brings the staffs of Headquarters New Zealand Defence Force and the Ministry of Defence closer together in staff work and decision-making. Since that time much work has been undertaken to design how the organisations can best achieve the Government's requirements. Initially, the primary focus in relation to the Ministry of Defence and New Zealand Defence Force relationship has been to define in detail which activities are the sole accountability of each chief executive, which are shared accountabilities and which are primarily the responsibility of either the Secretary of Defence or the Chief of Defence Force. This will clarify how both organisations will manage defence business. It will support sharing of information, pooling of expertise and retention of the ability to provide well founded contestable advice.
At the same time a number of projects which support joint effectiveness have been progressed, for example a joint Public Relations Unit for both the Ministry and the New Zealand Defence Force, new governance arrangements for capability development and acquisition and appointments made to the key positions of Deputy Secretary (Policy and Planning) and Vice Chief of Defence Force.
The improvement of joint effectiveness is both a short term and long term project. In the short term, the Deputy Secretary (Policy and Planning) has been tasked with, in collaboration with the Vice Chief of Defence Force, the establishment of a joint strategic office. Culture change will be achieved over a longer time frame. The Ministry is committed to achieving significant improvement in joint effectiveness.
Working together to eradicate the remnants of war
Ammunition and other ordnance that failed to explode or was abandoned during conflict has killed and injured hundreds, possibly thousands of people throughout the world. The humanitarian risks of the explosive remnants of war (ERW) were brought to the world's attention by the International Committee of the Red Cross in the aftermath of the Kosovo conflict. After that conflict, hundreds of casualties were caused by ERW, particularly unexploded cluster-bomb munitions, prompting nations to begin negotiations on a new protocol to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) that would cover ERW. The Ministry, drawing on advice from the New Zealand Defence Force Directorate of Legal Services and on the experience of New Zealand Defence Force personnel in ERW clearance, and working in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade's Disarmament Division, contributed to the development of a New Zealand negotiating position that advanced militarily practical solutions to mitigate the humanitarian risks posed by ERW. With this position, the New Zealand delegation, which included Ministry representatives, played a major role in securing measures in the final protocol that will have a significant impact in speeding up the clearance of the most dangerous ERW, and save lives after future conflicts. The Protocol on ERW was agreed in late 2003.
Next steps
Defence Capability and Resourcing Review
The Minister of Defence has commissioned a review of the alignment of defence capability and resource allocations against government policy. The review began in January 2004 and is expected to be completed in October 2004.
The New Zealand Defence Force's current output statements stem from several reviews and assessments undertaken in the 1990s. However, since 1999 the Government has set new policy directions contained in the Defence Policy Framework, the Government Defence Statement - A Modern, Sustainable Defence Force Matched to New Zealand's Needs issued in May 2001 and the Long-term Development Plan. There is evidence that suggests some of the assumptions and limitations behind the current output statements might not fully align with contemporary strategic direction and emerging trends.
The next step in planning to meet the Government's requirements is to conduct a review that will seek to identify the current and optimum capability configuration and resource requirements for defence to undertake the roles and tasks prescribed by the Government. The review will also provide the Minister with advice on how the optimum capability can best be realised.
