1984 Quiz Result
No slides accompany this paper
Summary of Address to the Public Service Senior Management Conference Te Papa, 24 September 2002
(For operational reasons Police have requested that a truncated version of Assistant Commissioner Rickards' presentation be made available.)
We've heard some challenging ideas about how the public service can position itself to meet the demands of the future. Using organised crime as a case study, I hope to put some operational flesh on the bones of some of those concepts.
Today, ethnic and outlaw motorcycle gangs are the most visible face of organised crime in New Zealand, but other entities are also playing large roles.
Drug sales, cultivation and importation form the major source of income. Organised criminals also make their money from immigration offences, pornography, gambling, fraud, security protection, prostitution and from the black market in paua and rock-lobster.
Some of the obvious and not so obvious effects include health and environmental damage, dangers to emergency service personnel and harm to young people.
So what could our society look like in 20 years' time if organised crime is left unchecked? We may see a very different New Zealand that is no longer as safe and free of corruption as it is today.
Our hospitals may be under severe pressure from people suffering the effects of drug addiction. We may have to invest in environmental protection to cope with toxic chemical waste from illicit drug manufacture.
And we could be looking at a country where the tax base is eroded by an apathetic community who would rather buy stolen goods than use legitimate channels.
Does this sound pessimistic, over-the-top and futuristic? Perhaps. But remember five years ago, we had no discernible methamphetamine production or abuse problem.
Back in 1997, who would have thought that today we've already busted 75 illegal methamphetamine laboratories this year? And those are just the ones we know about.
Organised crime might not be at the top of most departments' priority list. But somehow, somewhere, it will have an impact, and should figure at the very least in environmental scanning at planning time.
So what can the public sector do now to make sure we've responded appropriately 20 years out?
Rather than go into specific operational strategies, I'll outline a couple of avenues I think the wider public sector needs to be exploring more and more.
If we are to successfully confront organised crime, we need to look beyond the borders of our own organisations. The Combined Law Agency Group is a prime example of working together to combat organised crime. We need to build on those existing relationships, and we need to put a concerted effort into building new ones.
We also need to be much more aware of the impact of the black economy. Unlike the road safety sector, where we know the annual social cost of road crashes currently stands at $3.2 billion, the same degree of economic and social cost analysis simply has not been done for organised crime.
A more scientific approach may allow the public sector to better identify and respond to the down-stream effects of organised crime.
At the same time we need to look at the other side of the coin. How can the legitimate economy be made an attractive, easy and healthy choice for those deciding how they are going to make a buck?
Everyone in the public sector can potentially play a part. Every single official who makes it easier to comply with business rules, and every Work and Income officer who finds a job for the seemingly unemployable, is contributing to a win in the fight against organised crime.
And lastly, there are vital gains to be made through work with our children and young people.
Population-based ministries like Youth Affairs can provide great insight into how institutions like Police can reach troubled teenagers. Educationalists and health workers can build the knowledge and instil the self-esteem that will inoculate our tamariki against the beguiling tactics of organised criminals.
Will it work? I've seen it happen. When I was the District Commander in the Waikato, public sector agency heads got together and set up the Tiaki Tangata Project.
Tiaki Tangata flows from Reducing Inequalities. It uses the 'whole of Government' approach to re-shape the interactions between government agencies, Maori and the community in Huntly. Strategies around health, housing, training, education and employment are being developed.
Through addressing underlying problems, the project will ultimately have a very positive impact on Huntly's young people. In creating a better environment for the whole community, those kids will be much better placed to make good choices.
If we can do it in the Waikato with a handful of agencies, picture what could be achieved if we truly harnessed the talents, power and resources of the whole public sector.
I'd like to finish with a proverb from the Maori world, which I think encapsulates some of what I've said.
"Nau te rourou, naku te rourou, ka ora manuhiri; nau te rakau, naku te rakau, ka mate te hoariri."
It means: "By your food basket and mine, the guests will be satisfied with food. By your weapon and mine the enemy will be destroyed."
Or in other words, cooperative enterprise succeeds where individual efforts are insufficient.
Organised crime groups took that message on board years ago. The public sector has also taken up the challenge - but our journey has just begun.
