Of course all of this is corruption- the conveyor belt of public money to private bank-accounts- just not 'illegal' since it's done at the level of government sector / private sector rather than at the firm-to-firm level, and parliament as a whole as well as ministers are protected from the consequences of it by 'privilege'.
Government wantonly made both themselves and Councils 'not good at doing stuff' by abandoning the Public Works Dept and City Engineers Depts. These offices need to be reinstated, not necessarily as full vertically integrated services, but certainly at the project development & management level. Part of the problem is that competent engineers are expensive, even more so if deprived of the opportunity to ride the 'revolving door' on the way out of public service- which would be a necessary condition of service to guarantee loyalty to the public service ethos. This might cause conflict with CEO's over salaries.
Concerning large-scale projects.: The Judiciary has been found wanting in its favouritism to the contracting industry over government. The Transmission Gulley partnership successfully sued the government for 'extras' demanded for remediation of unstable ground in an environment where the possibility of such conditions were predictable and ought to have been insured against by the partnership or borne out of their own resources. This sends a message to future PPP partners that it's ok to tender low to get a contract then use the law to get top-ups as required.
Great explanation. Coming from a reliability engineering perspective, I always ask the question what's the Life Cycle Cost of the purchased or, in this case, the PPP for installing a new bridge across Auckland harbor or water system for Wellington?
Project oriented folks often install cheaper parts without regard for the reliability and maintenance costs of the project over its lifetime, or even establishing an appropriate maintenance/reliability programme for the asset. Once installed/completed the costs start adding up, particularly if repairs and maintenance are cost+overhead & profit, providing an opportunity for the private investor to gain even more payback if they have been awarded the maintenance contract for the asset. It's a deep hole and another reason the government should keep the projects to itself and ensure a high level of project capability and after completion reliability.
How to provide infrastructure to support universal basic services?
Use the power of the state to spend the funding into existence to provide infrastructure, set up a Ministry of Green Works to plan for and provide the necessary infrastructure, recognise the extent to which skills need to be rebuilt in the public sector which means short term contracting out with an explicit requirement in such contracts to provide training and skill development to the public sector.
Yikes. Glad I asked! Seriously, thank you Craig. I did need to read your column (slowly) twice, but I have a much better understanding now.
Can we say that the main function of PPS in NZ is to outsource project management? Maybe we just need a big grunty Department For Getting Things Done. Populate it with expert lawyers, money people and project managers and get on with it. Pay them properly so we have the expertise and commitment to reduce risk to very low levels. Is this feasible? (We are already paying these people indirectly through PPP models).
I have a vague feeling it has previously been attempted - in a half-hearted way?
The big grunty Department that used to do exactly "getting things done" was the Ministry of Works and Development until it was destroyed in the first enthusiasms of neoliberalism.
Oh yeah! I forgot to ask Craig, do you have any thoughts on the new potential consequences of PPPs with the looming passing of the TPB(potentially) & the RSB(highly likely)? With these two bills passing how will it affect the relationships between local communities & corporations?
I think Labour was saying no we don't support without actually saying it. Yes, I find it bizarre that instead of saying "we don't support it because it costs double" which should be enough of a reason not to do them, they went with a complicated explanation as to what they disagree with (health, education, prisons) and say they support anything else but only if it represents a positive for jobs and knowledge retaining.
I think they need someone like Pat Brittenden to run their comms.
The problem for Labour is that they still see the public economy as the same as a household, and don’t recognise that Aotearoa New Zealand is a sovereign currency issuing nation. So lots of concern about increasing our public debt level in case we get a ‘rainy day’ event, even though it is acknowledged that public borrowing is cheaper than any PPP financing, and direct contracting is cheaper. And absolutely no recognition of the government’s ability to just spend money for infrastructure - if the real resources for planning/designing/constructing/maintaining/operating infrastructre is available. At least that is what I got from listening to the Labour Finance Spokesperson on BHN.
I'm not sure that's what she thinks but that they think it too complicated to explain to Joe Public that has an understanding span of 280 characters on Twitter.
They need a bulldog to chew Luxmore's leg off instead of mincing around like a troupe of flower fairies. Sadly these types are rare as rocking-horse shit in the Left these days. "I wouldn't want that rough-speaking tyke at my dinner-party darling, so why on earth would they be acceptable to the nation?" This is a problem with the professionalisation of politics- a factor that is almost entirely a contamination of the Left- the Right being well resourced with candidates from outside the world of policy-wonkery, albeit most are just 'bums on seats' led by business grifters parachuted in by think-tanks.
Look at China. Look at Scandinavia. Singapore. Japan. South Korea. Using our sovereign power to serve the nation really seems the best kind of ppp. But our leaders seem to prefer the ppps of private profit to the ppps of public service?
My first question on PPP's comes down to Why, if we are privatising all of our Countries Infrastructure & Primary Public Services & adding new ones as well, are we paying Taxes on things that provide "No affordable Public Services, or returns on our Public Investments of Tax Dollars" that are used to (supposedly) Pad (lower) the costs, so that the public Tax Dollar allows us all to afford to use these new PPP provided Services?
What's the Cost v Benefit to us all as Tax Payers, seemingly paying into a Black Hole for our Critical Public Services, as the current Government Slashes our Public spending and cancel those services, without as much as a Plan B in place to fix the underfunding mess that's been created since the establishment of Neoliberal "User Pays", some 40 very odd years ago?
If our Taxes aren't used to offset Funding needs for Critical Infrastructure Projects and they're handed over to the Private Sector for all those Acronym's of Structured forms of Future Models of Management Contracts that DO NOTHING TO REDUCE our Costs for these PPP arrangements, where's the Public Benefit, from the $10,000's of thousands of Dollars we pay in from our supposedly "Unearned Incomes"?
WTF is goin on here, that our SOE's are intentionally allowed to run down to the point of collapse before some Government Numpty, Finance Minister, without a Degree in Financial Management, or PM that once ran our Airline into the ground, Wakes up and yells FIRE in the Public Theatre about an imminent threat to our public Health, or Safety, or Wellbeing's?
Does PPP Money invested to get a specific return for that type of investor come off a different Printing Press than our PAYE contributions that just go away when our pay checks arrive in our Aussie Bank Accounts? This stuff just doesn't Wash with me!
Why are we not sharing the Wealth of our Civil & Civic Progress through Public Bond offerings that allow us ALL to get a fair return on the Hard & according to you, "Unearned dollars" in our pockets, we're all willing to chip in equally for with our Tax Dollar donations to your worthless causes?
Don't WE have an interest in building a better future for ourselves and our kids and just want to share in the Countries Wealth to make this stuff happen without having to give away the Farm and sell our kids into Neoliberal Economic Slavery for the rest of their lives too?
It seems to me that this Neoliberal Capitalist System is eating our Lunch, while we pay for it without any pudding being offered for Desert, on our side of the Table?
Are we Bottom Feeders just too stupid in our governments Milkshake with Sprinkles Minds to be allowed to participate in our own futures in creating what we need & need a damn good Spanking for even thinking about a True PPP, that returns a Penny, or two back to us, the small "P" part of the Debt / Capital Return equation???
We pay, you play Cricket with Despots is not an equitable deal in my feeble old mind, while we all play "Something for nothing" Political Hunger Games for our daily bread, while waiting for the next course to arrive, Late, Stale & Unpalatable.
It comes down to Expected Returns on investment, in other words Money Money Money, so if the returns aren't sweet enough, the private Partner f**ks off with the Public Investment in it's pocket to cover their Due diligence Design & Management costs & we go back to square one to pick up whatever pieces are left to start over again with the next numpty's that walk backward into their Front Row Seats in Parliament.
The Right to Infinite, unhindered Profits needs to be revoked & if need be, burned in Witch's Fire from your simple superstitious mind. The People proposing such a nonsense need incarceration, or a damn good Tar & Feathering before they're Cake Walked outa town on a broken down Railroad Rail!!
You want infinite profits off my Back & Bucks, do you mr. Luxon, Let's take a walk and we can discuss that while you give me the reasons why you expect that silly thought you have to come into fruition.
You've wrecked our country inside of a year, blamed it all on your opposition for being kind during a Global Pandemic, so everybody came through it and out the other side ready to support a New Deal of Fairness and Equitable sharing, together, then you hit us all over the head with your Me, Me, Me, Money club and tell me I'm a bottom feeder???
Well here's an old friend of mine, his name is Willie Mays, he weighs 22 ounces and is made of Good ole HARD Hickory Wood! He's with me to knock some sense into that thick Bald Skull of yours if you can't get over your Neoliberal self and start doing what you're paid a LOT of My Money for. You and ole Willie are gonna have a short sharp conversation that will give you a headache like you've never experienced before in your short worthless life! Your Choice, Mr. (small case) big!
If you change your course PRONTO TONTO & start being an ALL inclusive leader that you Brag about being, without coming to the party, maybe we can get along until the next round of Democratic style Elections, but that's as far as I can see you're being useful to me, or my Whanau (Family and Friends in case you need a translation).
Let's take a walk, I'm dying out here to talk with you, hopefully peacefully, but thats up to you and ole Willie Mays on how our Walky Talky ends!
I hope our Federated Farmers see through their chances of selling Dairy Cows & Products to India, which in everyone else's minds is like selling Sno-Cones to Eskimo's, before they wake the F**K up and smell the burnt coffee on their stoves about that stupid idea you're hung up on as a way to save you're sorry arse from the fate you Well Deserve at this stage of your last term in government for bloody ever! Politic's is just NOT your Forté matie!
Go back to Deodorant sales for Uni (one) Lever. you can't be trusted with anything Public in your otherwise empty , Portfolio.
I hope we get over this intentionally confusing "Acronym" thing we seem hung up on using these days! Let's spell this sh*t out and stop intentionally confusing everybody on what they're supposed to mean. Just another unnecessary distraction at my expense of course! For all I know, GST just means "Government Sanctioned Theft" because that's exactly what it is!
Thanks for this great explainer Craig (even with the overwhelming number of acronyms 😂).
Of course all of this is corruption- the conveyor belt of public money to private bank-accounts- just not 'illegal' since it's done at the level of government sector / private sector rather than at the firm-to-firm level, and parliament as a whole as well as ministers are protected from the consequences of it by 'privilege'.
Government wantonly made both themselves and Councils 'not good at doing stuff' by abandoning the Public Works Dept and City Engineers Depts. These offices need to be reinstated, not necessarily as full vertically integrated services, but certainly at the project development & management level. Part of the problem is that competent engineers are expensive, even more so if deprived of the opportunity to ride the 'revolving door' on the way out of public service- which would be a necessary condition of service to guarantee loyalty to the public service ethos. This might cause conflict with CEO's over salaries.
Concerning large-scale projects.: The Judiciary has been found wanting in its favouritism to the contracting industry over government. The Transmission Gulley partnership successfully sued the government for 'extras' demanded for remediation of unstable ground in an environment where the possibility of such conditions were predictable and ought to have been insured against by the partnership or borne out of their own resources. This sends a message to future PPP partners that it's ok to tender low to get a contract then use the law to get top-ups as required.
Great explanation. Coming from a reliability engineering perspective, I always ask the question what's the Life Cycle Cost of the purchased or, in this case, the PPP for installing a new bridge across Auckland harbor or water system for Wellington?
Project oriented folks often install cheaper parts without regard for the reliability and maintenance costs of the project over its lifetime, or even establishing an appropriate maintenance/reliability programme for the asset. Once installed/completed the costs start adding up, particularly if repairs and maintenance are cost+overhead & profit, providing an opportunity for the private investor to gain even more payback if they have been awarded the maintenance contract for the asset. It's a deep hole and another reason the government should keep the projects to itself and ensure a high level of project capability and after completion reliability.
Such a wonderful explanation for people!
How to provide infrastructure to support universal basic services?
Use the power of the state to spend the funding into existence to provide infrastructure, set up a Ministry of Green Works to plan for and provide the necessary infrastructure, recognise the extent to which skills need to be rebuilt in the public sector which means short term contracting out with an explicit requirement in such contracts to provide training and skill development to the public sector.
What is covered by universal public services?
Here is one response https://www.jasonhickel.org/blog/2023/3/18/universal-public-services
Yikes. Glad I asked! Seriously, thank you Craig. I did need to read your column (slowly) twice, but I have a much better understanding now.
Can we say that the main function of PPS in NZ is to outsource project management? Maybe we just need a big grunty Department For Getting Things Done. Populate it with expert lawyers, money people and project managers and get on with it. Pay them properly so we have the expertise and commitment to reduce risk to very low levels. Is this feasible? (We are already paying these people indirectly through PPP models).
I have a vague feeling it has previously been attempted - in a half-hearted way?
The big grunty Department that used to do exactly "getting things done" was the Ministry of Works and Development until it was destroyed in the first enthusiasms of neoliberalism.
Yes. Exactly that.
Oh yeah! I forgot to ask Craig, do you have any thoughts on the new potential consequences of PPPs with the looming passing of the TPB(potentially) & the RSB(highly likely)? With these two bills passing how will it affect the relationships between local communities & corporations?
Yet Labour seems to be in favour of PPPs, albeit with a few caveats.
I think Labour was saying no we don't support without actually saying it. Yes, I find it bizarre that instead of saying "we don't support it because it costs double" which should be enough of a reason not to do them, they went with a complicated explanation as to what they disagree with (health, education, prisons) and say they support anything else but only if it represents a positive for jobs and knowledge retaining.
I think they need someone like Pat Brittenden to run their comms.
The problem for Labour is that they still see the public economy as the same as a household, and don’t recognise that Aotearoa New Zealand is a sovereign currency issuing nation. So lots of concern about increasing our public debt level in case we get a ‘rainy day’ event, even though it is acknowledged that public borrowing is cheaper than any PPP financing, and direct contracting is cheaper. And absolutely no recognition of the government’s ability to just spend money for infrastructure - if the real resources for planning/designing/constructing/maintaining/operating infrastructre is available. At least that is what I got from listening to the Labour Finance Spokesperson on BHN.
I'm not sure that's what she thinks but that they think it too complicated to explain to Joe Public that has an understanding span of 280 characters on Twitter.
That's why they need clever comms.
They need a bulldog to chew Luxmore's leg off instead of mincing around like a troupe of flower fairies. Sadly these types are rare as rocking-horse shit in the Left these days. "I wouldn't want that rough-speaking tyke at my dinner-party darling, so why on earth would they be acceptable to the nation?" This is a problem with the professionalisation of politics- a factor that is almost entirely a contamination of the Left- the Right being well resourced with candidates from outside the world of policy-wonkery, albeit most are just 'bums on seats' led by business grifters parachuted in by think-tanks.
Excellent rundown, many thanks.
Any opinions on ...
https://bsky.app/profile/nzheretic.bsky.social/post/3kmz3uzjiws2j
Look at China. Look at Scandinavia. Singapore. Japan. South Korea. Using our sovereign power to serve the nation really seems the best kind of ppp. But our leaders seem to prefer the ppps of private profit to the ppps of public service?
My first question on PPP's comes down to Why, if we are privatising all of our Countries Infrastructure & Primary Public Services & adding new ones as well, are we paying Taxes on things that provide "No affordable Public Services, or returns on our Public Investments of Tax Dollars" that are used to (supposedly) Pad (lower) the costs, so that the public Tax Dollar allows us all to afford to use these new PPP provided Services?
What's the Cost v Benefit to us all as Tax Payers, seemingly paying into a Black Hole for our Critical Public Services, as the current Government Slashes our Public spending and cancel those services, without as much as a Plan B in place to fix the underfunding mess that's been created since the establishment of Neoliberal "User Pays", some 40 very odd years ago?
If our Taxes aren't used to offset Funding needs for Critical Infrastructure Projects and they're handed over to the Private Sector for all those Acronym's of Structured forms of Future Models of Management Contracts that DO NOTHING TO REDUCE our Costs for these PPP arrangements, where's the Public Benefit, from the $10,000's of thousands of Dollars we pay in from our supposedly "Unearned Incomes"?
WTF is goin on here, that our SOE's are intentionally allowed to run down to the point of collapse before some Government Numpty, Finance Minister, without a Degree in Financial Management, or PM that once ran our Airline into the ground, Wakes up and yells FIRE in the Public Theatre about an imminent threat to our public Health, or Safety, or Wellbeing's?
Does PPP Money invested to get a specific return for that type of investor come off a different Printing Press than our PAYE contributions that just go away when our pay checks arrive in our Aussie Bank Accounts? This stuff just doesn't Wash with me!
Why are we not sharing the Wealth of our Civil & Civic Progress through Public Bond offerings that allow us ALL to get a fair return on the Hard & according to you, "Unearned dollars" in our pockets, we're all willing to chip in equally for with our Tax Dollar donations to your worthless causes?
Don't WE have an interest in building a better future for ourselves and our kids and just want to share in the Countries Wealth to make this stuff happen without having to give away the Farm and sell our kids into Neoliberal Economic Slavery for the rest of their lives too?
It seems to me that this Neoliberal Capitalist System is eating our Lunch, while we pay for it without any pudding being offered for Desert, on our side of the Table?
Are we Bottom Feeders just too stupid in our governments Milkshake with Sprinkles Minds to be allowed to participate in our own futures in creating what we need & need a damn good Spanking for even thinking about a True PPP, that returns a Penny, or two back to us, the small "P" part of the Debt / Capital Return equation???
We pay, you play Cricket with Despots is not an equitable deal in my feeble old mind, while we all play "Something for nothing" Political Hunger Games for our daily bread, while waiting for the next course to arrive, Late, Stale & Unpalatable.
It comes down to Expected Returns on investment, in other words Money Money Money, so if the returns aren't sweet enough, the private Partner f**ks off with the Public Investment in it's pocket to cover their Due diligence Design & Management costs & we go back to square one to pick up whatever pieces are left to start over again with the next numpty's that walk backward into their Front Row Seats in Parliament.
The Right to Infinite, unhindered Profits needs to be revoked & if need be, burned in Witch's Fire from your simple superstitious mind. The People proposing such a nonsense need incarceration, or a damn good Tar & Feathering before they're Cake Walked outa town on a broken down Railroad Rail!!
You want infinite profits off my Back & Bucks, do you mr. Luxon, Let's take a walk and we can discuss that while you give me the reasons why you expect that silly thought you have to come into fruition.
You've wrecked our country inside of a year, blamed it all on your opposition for being kind during a Global Pandemic, so everybody came through it and out the other side ready to support a New Deal of Fairness and Equitable sharing, together, then you hit us all over the head with your Me, Me, Me, Money club and tell me I'm a bottom feeder???
Well here's an old friend of mine, his name is Willie Mays, he weighs 22 ounces and is made of Good ole HARD Hickory Wood! He's with me to knock some sense into that thick Bald Skull of yours if you can't get over your Neoliberal self and start doing what you're paid a LOT of My Money for. You and ole Willie are gonna have a short sharp conversation that will give you a headache like you've never experienced before in your short worthless life! Your Choice, Mr. (small case) big!
If you change your course PRONTO TONTO & start being an ALL inclusive leader that you Brag about being, without coming to the party, maybe we can get along until the next round of Democratic style Elections, but that's as far as I can see you're being useful to me, or my Whanau (Family and Friends in case you need a translation).
Let's take a walk, I'm dying out here to talk with you, hopefully peacefully, but thats up to you and ole Willie Mays on how our Walky Talky ends!
I hope our Federated Farmers see through their chances of selling Dairy Cows & Products to India, which in everyone else's minds is like selling Sno-Cones to Eskimo's, before they wake the F**K up and smell the burnt coffee on their stoves about that stupid idea you're hung up on as a way to save you're sorry arse from the fate you Well Deserve at this stage of your last term in government for bloody ever! Politic's is just NOT your Forté matie!
Go back to Deodorant sales for Uni (one) Lever. you can't be trusted with anything Public in your otherwise empty , Portfolio.
I hope we get over this intentionally confusing "Acronym" thing we seem hung up on using these days! Let's spell this sh*t out and stop intentionally confusing everybody on what they're supposed to mean. Just another unnecessary distraction at my expense of course! For all I know, GST just means "Government Sanctioned Theft" because that's exactly what it is!
I rest my Case your Honour!
A very informative read thanks very much
Great to have this explained so clearly. Thanks!