Improve public services - poll

People want better public services and more say on what should be provided, a poll released today shows.

Most people, 61 percent, agreed that the public service needed to deliver better frontline services and that would mean changing how things were done.

Slightly more, 64 percent, agreed that the public should have more say in deciding what public services should be provided and how.

Only 22 percent agreed that the "experts" who run and manage public services were in the best position to decide what services should be provided, and how.

The UMR Research survey questioned 750 people aged 18 and over. They were polled after being told that the Government had said it wants better frontline services but there was no extra money available and in some areas possibly less.

More people, 45 percent, agreed that better frontline services could be provided, without providing more money, by cutting waste compared with 25 percent who disagreed.

Only 26 percent agreed that frontline services were run efficiently and that it would be difficult to achieve better frontline services without more money.

Most people, 54 percent, were not confident that public service managers would improve frontline services without additional funding.

"There is a compelling message here for public sector managers to listen to the public," said UMR executive director Tim Grafton.

"They might get some ideas on how to improve frontline services."

- NZPA