13 hectares of more bureaucrats
Gerry Brownlee has put out a PR about the space taken up by the pulic service in Wellington. This has had a massive impact on office rentals for the private sector. People like Bob Jones have made scores or hundreds of millions of dollars under Labour in Wellington, because of the massive increase. Small and medium businesses have struggled due to the cost of office space.
In the past five years Labour has overseen an increase in the amount of extra floor space leased for bureaucrats in central Wellington equivalent to almost four Te Papas, says National’s State Services spokesman, Gerry Brownlee.
“How can people have faith and trust in Labour’s stewardship of the public service when it has overseen an increase in the amount of extra floor space leased for bureaucrats in the past five years that equates to an additional 13.2 hectares?”
That is a lot of space!
“Meanwhile, Bayleys Real Estate estimates that the government sector now occupies almost 40% of the total commercial space in the Wellington CBD, and says the ‘surge’ of floor uptake involves ‘quite staggering numbers’.”
Gerry included a table of agencies and office space from 1999 to 2008. During that time the amount of office space has increased from 252,000 square metres to 446,000 – a 77% increase.
Some of the largest increases:
- Human Rights Commission up 178%
- Commerce Commission up 176%
- Education Ministry up 155%
- Social Development Ministry up 122%
- Transport up 117%
- Environment Ministry up 110%
In absolute terms the IRD has grown by 25,000 square metres, Education Ministry by 13,000 square metres, Labour Department by almost 7,000 square metres, ACC by 6,000 square metres, NZQA by 5,000 square metres, Justice Ministry by 5,000 square metres.
Congratulations to Treasury who reduced their office space by 2,000 square metres or 18%.