(I assume from this that it is becoming apparent that the US federal
government has embarked on their own process of reinvention....)
I offered to answer specific queries about the New Zealand government
reinvention process, or to pass on queries to appropriate places.
I'm a policy analyst working for the NZ government in education policy.
I was out of NZ from 1987-92, so missed the worst of the restructuring of the
public service, namely wholesale downsizing to facilitate reorganisation from
implementation departments to policy ministries, making a small lean and mean
public sector, the institution of user-pays for many social services and
services previously paid for wholly or in part by the State, and the
significant reduction of government spending in order to meet foreign debt
obligations and reduce the nation's deficit. This restructuring would have
been less radical without the Wall Street Crash, I have to say--the flow-on
from that resulted in something like 40% of the stock market-listed NZ
companies being wiped out, which in turn forced large-scale unemployment...
( I didn't experience the dislocation and redudancy and sudden umemployment
that many NZers experienced -- I awas having my own dislocations in grad school
for 5 years, in Vancouver and NYC!)
Since I have been back here, working in the public service on policy
development, I've been observing the continuing reinventions first hand, and
have had a small hand in the education ones.
Right now I don't have time to do exhaustive cross checking of all the
references, and NZ is only just getting onto the internet so I can't even give
you addresses for discussion lists and so on (though you might try posting a
request to
soc.culture.nz since that is bound to turn up responses.)
Here, however, are some books you'd find helpful to pursue:
Jane Kelsey _Rolling Back the State: Privatisation of Power in Aotearoa/New
Zealand_
Bridget Williams Books, Wellington 1993 ISBN 0 9089 12 42 0
Andrew Sharp (ed) _Leap Into the Dark: The Changing Role of the State in New
Zealand since 1984_ Auckland University Press, Auckland 1994
Colin James _The Quiet Revolution: Turbulence and Transition in Contemporary
New Zealand_ Allen and Unwin, Wellington 1986
(also by Colin James is _Turning Point_ (1993), for which I don't have
complete references, but this is an excellent overview from 1975 to 1993)
Jane Kelsey _A Question of Honour? Labour and the Treaty 1984-89_ Allen and
Unwin, Wellington 1990
M Holland and J Boston (eds) _The Fourth Labour Government: Politics and
Policies in New Zealand_ Oxford University Press, Auckland 1990
J Boston and P Dalziel (eds) _The Decent Society: Essays in Response to
National's Economic and Social Policies_ Oxford University Press, Auckland
1992
J Deeks and N Perry _Controlling Interests: Business, the State and Society
in New Zealand_ Auckland University Press, Auckland 1992
GW Palmer _New Zealand's Constitution in Crisis: Reforming our political
system_ John McIndoe, Dunedin 1992
also by GW Palmer is _Unbridled Power?_ Oxford University Press, Auckland 1989
outlines the the philosophy and arguments for constitutional reform and the
reinvention of government in New Zealand.)
A von Tunzelmann and J Johnston (eds) Responding to the Revolution: Careers,
Culture and Casualties NZ Institute of Policy Studies/Government Printer,
Wellington 1987
Walker (ed) _The Making of Rogernomics_ Auckland University Press 1989
Apart from the above, t specific (and I mean tightly focused) questions may be
more
useful for you in terms of getting an answer--EVERYTHING in government here
has been reinvented in the past 5-7 years, and I mean EVERYTHING!!!!
Raewyn Whyte, in New Zealand