INSIGHTS
OPERATING IN A POLITICAL SYSTEM WITHOUT OPERATING POLITICALLY NAVIGATING PONEKETANGA HE MARANGAI MĀ E TE PONEKETANGA
Kate Butler
Kate Butler, Solicitor at Russell McVeagh, brings together some insights about political nous following a series of events hosted by IPANZ and the Australia New Zealand School of Government.
Sir Robert Armstrong, former UK Cabinet Secretary, once wrote that the public service “has no constitutional personality or responsibility separate from the duly elected Government of the day”.
Government, Competition and Regulatory practice group), Paul James (Secretary for Internal Affairs), Tory Whanau (Mayor of Wellington), and Mike Munro (Director of Munro Church Communications).
While Sir Robert is undoubtedly correct, his assertion raises an important question; how should public servants, bound by the convention of political neutrality, effectively serve political governments?
The series, with events targeted both at new professionals specifically, and more senior public servants, focused on navigating the relationship with ministers and their offices, developing political nous, and understanding the politics without getting involved in the politics.
This question – of exercising political nous as a public servant – formed the subject of a series of events hosted by IPANZ and the Australia New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG) titled Ministers and officials: Getting the relationship right. Speakers at these events were Deb Te Kawa (independent consultant specialising in governance, public policy, and change management), Steven Sutton (Special Counsel in Russell McVeagh’s
What is political nous? One analogy that was used was that political nous is about having the courage to walk through water without getting wet, but being smart enough to know that is impossible. Our speakers all agreed that political nous is the ability to understand the political
environment that ministers operate in. When asked what ‘good’ political nous looks like, they reflected several key elements: •
Customer centricity and understanding your minister(s), including the roles they play outside service as a minister (e.g. party, electorate, community, family), and influences on their decision-making (their philosophies, and their trusted advisors).
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Working with others and leading with influence (not authority), as those with poor relationship management rarely succeed.
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Understanding your own brief and the context within which it sits.
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Understanding your role, including the boundaries of free and frank advice, and what is within and outside your scope of responsibility.
Political nous for new professionals New professionals are often at the flax roots on policy advice, with limited access to ministers and the political sphere. Advice to those starting out in their careers is to be curious – immerse yourself in the world of the public service and politics, follow the debates and the genesis of policies, and familiarise yourself with resources like the Cabinet Manual, the Public Service Code of Conduct, and the Policy Project. After all, political nous is developed through a ‘political upbringing’, the result of exposure to political conversations and considerations.
20 PUBLIC SECTOR Winter 2023