PUBLIC SERVICE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3164, 16 August 1917, Page 5

PUBLIC SERVICE

KEPORT OF COMMISSIONER COMMENT ON DEPARTMENTAL ACCOUNTS Tho fifth report of tho Public Service Commissioner was presented to Parliament yesterday. The report refers to tho stalling difficulties arising from tho enlistment of many officers and tho creation of new service.'). "Tho recruiting ot the sorvjee," states tho Commissioner, "is necessarily difficult, owing to tho competition, in a eomowhat crude form, which exists throughout tho country for trained men and women, but this is no doubt impossible to prevent so long as national service does not exist. On tho whole, however, tho wastage of tho staff, owing to deaths, retirements, and resignations, has not beon so great as was anticipated, anil till) position will much less acute, as tho large numbers of cadets, male and female, recently appointed are trained. Tho number of officers absent with tho Expeditionary Force on March 31, 191(, was 2133, and tho wastage of tho permanent staff numbored 1183, all of which had to bo provided for. Tho wastngo represented approximately 10 per cont. for tho year for Departments othor than tho Post and Telegraph, and. 5 per cont. for tnc latter Department. "Generally, it .is becoming obvious that it will bo almost immediately necessary to determine what facilities at present enjoyed by the public are to bo restricted or abandoned, • says the Commissioner. . • "Tho permanent staff is being rapidly depleted not only by officers boing called up for activo service, but by tho demand of the Defence Department, and its war branches for trained officers. It is very desirable, therefore, that it should bo decided without delav what-services are to be restricted or abandoned beforo the Second Division officers of tho Public Service are called "Tho importance of a proper system of account keeping appears to bo taking an unnecessarily long time to mako ltselt realised. The Treasury has, however, been ablo to allot the duty of inspection of Departmental accounts to a qualified otficer for a portion of tho year, llio tliuiculties of tho Treasury at tho present time, owing to tho absence of so many ot its trained officers and the heavy worlc incident on tho War Loan, aro recognised, but tho urgent necessity of placing ail account-keeping on a businesslike looting should not bo lost sight of. Departments whoso operations are moro or less of a commercial nature should bo required to place their accounts on a commercial basis, 60 that some idea of tho profit or loss arising may be ascertained. Until this is dono there is little hopo of reasonable economy, or of the Government being mado aware of the exact position of the accounts of the Departments eoncerned." The Commissioner says that some Departments aro still neglecting to define tho duties attached to particular offices or to mako clear the relations which should exist between officers in one section or branch of a Department and another, with resulting lack of uniformity of method. The duties of officers occupyin" responsible positions should bo clearand the practices to bo followed in routino work should be outlined and published. A largo defalcation which recently occurred would probably liavo been impossible if proper instructions had been in force. A proper system of inspection of all offices was recommended in the first report of tho Commissioner. Had thin recommendation been given effect and inspections carried out by an officer competent to conduct an internal audit, defalcations amounting to nlxmt .CM,OOO in recent years vcould have been practically impossible. Many Departments con'ld carry out such inspection and intermil audit by a temporary re-arrange-metit of duties amnutlly or oftener witnout the necessity of appointing a permanent inspector. Tho report emphasises again flie need ol increased accommodation for the Government Departments in Wellington, whore .£7300 is paid annually for rented premises, and efficient management and supervision are rendered most difficult.