Nice to see cheap point scoring avoided
The Dom Post reported:
Police Commissioner Howard Broad has a chauffeur as the force slashes its vehicle fleet and considers selling stations and houses to cut costs.
Police are defending the driving position, despite claims that some community constables have lost their cars to help shave $21 million off the police budget. Police are selling up to 340 vehicles and are considering selling stations or housing to help make budget savings.
Police National Headquarters said a “logistics and project officer”, who is a sergeant, acted as a driver for Mr Broad, but said he also had other duties. These included organising security and providing support to Mr Broad while he was on the road.
I think the story is a bit of a beat-up, but often people will use it to score points. But look at this. First the Minister:
Police Minister Judith Collins backed the role. “He has got to be available to take urgent phone calls of a critical nature at a moment’s notice.”
Then the union:
Police Association president Greg O’Connor said he believed the driving job was “an absolutely essential role”. He agreed that some officers would question it continuing while cars were being cut from the fleet, but said it was a completely separate issue because Mr Broad would have a car regardless.
And then the Opposition:
Labour law and order spokesman Clayton Cosgrove said the role was justified. “[The commissioner] is on deck 24 hours, seven days a week and he is running a department of in excess of 10,000 people.”
Well done Clayton Cosgrove. Being in opposition doesn’t mean having to criticise everything.
September 8th, 2009 at 11:12 am
Organising security for Broad, why ?
He is at far less risk than any bobbie on the beat.
I’m surprised Broad does not use the royal we, he needs security because he cannot be replaced ?
Why a Sergeant as a driver, Broad is hardly likely to be in any high speed chases, and I would expect any police constable to have the ability to answer the phone.
September 8th, 2009 at 11:37 am
I can’t understand the security aspect either.
Surely day to day operational decisions are made by a senior commander in some sort of control or watch center where he or she has a staff, communications, and access to all police resources. Rather than by the commissioner while he is on the road. I’d assumed that the job of the commissioner was to manage the department, rather than to head up operational matters.
But it’d be interested to see if any other government department CEOs have chauffeur driven cars and a 24×7 aide. The heads of most of the key departments (foreign affairs, treasury, reserve bank, defence, health, etc) would also be on deck 24 hours a day and might have to respond to some urgent situation. For instance, does the DG of Health have a chauffeur/aide with him 24 hours a day in case there is an outbreak of disease that requires immediate response from wherever the DG is at the time?
September 8th, 2009 at 11:59 am
Oh well, I’ll make the obvious cheap point then. Broad needs a driver so that he can get off his face without being breathalysed.
September 8th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
I would bet that the senior officers of the Army, Navy and Air Force all have an aide on 24/7 call, and I would further suggest that they are likely to be far more senior than a mere sergeant. The aide for people in these positions needs to be someone with the institutional knowledge to assist their principal with minimal supervision. I think this level of puritanical quibbling is strange … we expect our various services to perform at levels comparable to their international counterparts, yet as a country we expect them to operate on the kinds of resources available to the local PTA.
If we want them to do their job, give them the resources and get out of their way.
September 8th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
@ bharmer…well said
September 8th, 2009 at 1:09 pm
bharmer>I would bet that the senior officers of the Army, Navy and Air Force all have an aide on 24/7 call,
My impression was that the heads of the three services were responsible for training and equipping their forces, but that operation control was the responsibility of the joint forces people based in the old government computer center at Trentham. I can see why COMJFNZ (thanks Google!) need to be on call in case an operational incident needed an immediate response, but I don’t see why a policy issue can’t wait.
But how about the Governor of the Reserve Bank, or the head of Treasury… do they warrant chauffeurs or not?
September 8th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
I would suggest Cosgrove took that tack to avoid having his brains scrambled by Collins again.
September 8th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
Goff still managed to sound like an asshole
September 8th, 2009 at 8:01 pm
Another case of ‘breathless’ reporting. The permanent secretaries of all government departments are entitled to chauffeured crown limos (and always have been).
And I agree with Dime. Contrast the ‘responsible’ position taken by Cosgrove with Phil Goofs pathetic attempt to make hay out of silage.
Beware the Ids of September, October, November et seq.
September 8th, 2009 at 9:33 pm
Collins’ defence of Broad shows she is in his pocket already.
Thunder and a flurry of PR for the easy projects like boy racers, and ever more social-work responsibilities for the police, but stuff all done about the country’s criminal gangs.
If Broad was doing his job properly he – and Collins – would need cars with armoured bodies and armoured glass to protect them from the remnants of dying gangs. They would probably be in bulletproof jackets and armed, too. Then they would be justified in having armed chauffeurs and additional bodyguards.
September 8th, 2009 at 10:18 pm
Broad should have been driven home the day after the election and told to find another job.
How’s the latest attempt at a proper investigation of the Brash email theft coming along Commissioner?
September 9th, 2009 at 6:49 am
> “He has got to be available to take urgent phone calls of a critical nature at a moment’s notice.”
I’m sure he does. What Collins seems to be saying is that Broad can’t answer a phone and drive at the same time. In other words, he can’t multi task. I would’ve thought that multi tasking was an important part of his job. If he can’t talk while driving, you really have to wonder whether he’s fit for the job. And I would like to hear fewer excuses from Collins in future.