Kiwiblog has drawn attention to a bit of legislation proceeding through Parliament which the blog headlines as The stupidest bill this year.
We didn’t learn about this private bill from the Beehive website because it is the work of Labour backbencher Rachel Boyack, who says professionals working in public services and Crown agencies often struggle to write in plain language.
This (Boyack says) acts as a barrier for many – including migrants, the disabled and those with English as a second language – from understanding what society is asking of them.
Her plain language bill, which passed its second reading in the House on Thursday, aims to make all public sector agencies use clear, concise language when communicating with the public.
It would require every public service and Crown agency to ensure they communicate in plain language and have a designated plain language officer.
Kiwiblog references a Stuff report which says:
Opposition MPs describe the bill as “stupid” and one which will create “language police”.
National’s Chris Bishop said the issue didn’t need to be legislated against.
Kiwiblog’s David Farrar comments:
But the objective is worthy – ridding us of bureaucratese, jargon, euphemism, circumlocution and political pap.
Whether or not this is done by unleashing language police or by having Peter Hughes send out an email, Point of Order agrees something should be done to make things clearer – and that goes for Beehive press officers and speech writers.
We say this after encountering a speech in which Associate Health Minister Peeni Henare kicked off by saying:
He lost us right there. Who are dapaanz?
We put it aside for now, preferring to look for news that is more easily digested.
But we stumbled again when checking out two items dealing with ministerial travel plans.
First (in plain English), the Minister Responsible for the NZSIS and GCSB, Andrew Little, will visit the capitals of the Five Eyes intelligence partnership – Canberra, Washington DC, Ottawa and London – from Sunday 4 until Wednesday 14 September.
More challenging, Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta tells us she will head for Papua New Guinea next week
We imagine this sort of carry-on is legal in that country.
Other Beehive news deals with:-
Human rights in Xinjiang
Māori language
Tourism
Anything else?
Not when we checked, which left us to grapple with the speech by Peeni Henare and his acknowledgement of the work done by “dapaanz”.
Point of Order looked for clues in the text and found the speech might have been written by someone in Mahuta’s office, because Henare said he was
More helpfully, he said:
Ah. Mental health and addiction.
But the speech was marred by more of the argot employed by the Ardern government, cumbersomely blending English and te reo. Perhaps the speech writer is paid by the word.
Examples:
and
Henare finished the speech without spelling out the full name of taapaanz.
We typed the letters into Google, which steered us to the home page of dapaanz.org.nz
Alas, this did not enlighten us, except to say:
On the Facebook page, we learned a bit more.
Great.
But what about the “D”?
We kept digging and found a site, therapycounselling.net – which steered us to DAPAANZ – Drug and Alcohol Practitioners’ Association Aotearoa–New Zealand.
By then we had been driven to drink.
Point of Order is a blog focused on politics and the economy run by veteran newspaper reporters Bob Edlin and Ian Templeton
Kiwiblog references a Stuff report which says:
This sweeping move would impact hundreds of workplaces.
Opposition MPs describe the bill as “stupid” and one which will create “language police”.
National’s Chris Bishop said the issue didn’t need to be legislated against.
“Why not send out an email from (state services commissioner) Peter Hughes saying we need to make sure we are writing clearly and concisely?”
Kiwiblog’s David Farrar comments:
Bishop is right. You don’t need an Act of Parliament to tell staff in agencies to use plain language.
I have no doubt this law will end up creating bureaucracy within the bureaucracy.
But the objective is worthy – ridding us of bureaucratese, jargon, euphemism, circumlocution and political pap.
Whether or not this is done by unleashing language police or by having Peter Hughes send out an email, Point of Order agrees something should be done to make things clearer – and that goes for Beehive press officers and speech writers.
We say this after encountering a speech in which Associate Health Minister Peeni Henare kicked off by saying:
I want to acknowledge the incredible work that dapaanz has done over the last twenty years in supporting and guiding the professionalisation of our addiction workforce.
He lost us right there. Who are dapaanz?
We put it aside for now, preferring to look for news that is more easily digested.
But we stumbled again when checking out two items dealing with ministerial travel plans.
First (in plain English), the Minister Responsible for the NZSIS and GCSB, Andrew Little, will visit the capitals of the Five Eyes intelligence partnership – Canberra, Washington DC, Ottawa and London – from Sunday 4 until Wednesday 14 September.
More challenging, Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta tells us she will head for Papua New Guinea next week
“… to engage kanohi ki te kanohi with partners and visit key development initiatives in the region”.
We imagine this sort of carry-on is legal in that country.
Other Beehive news deals with:-
Human rights in Xinjiang
Foreign Affairs Minister says New Zealand is deeply concerned at a new United Nations report that concludes serious human rights violations have been committed against ethnic and religious minorities in Xinjiang, and supports calls for China to respond.
New Zealand has been consistent in raising grave concerns regarding the treatment of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, Mahuta said.
“We are particularly concerned about the report’s conclusions regarding arbitrary detention, torture, sexual and gender-based violence, forced medical treatment, widespread surveillance, violations of reproductive rights, restrictions on freedom of religion or belief, and forced labour.”
New Zealand will further consider all the details in the report to determine appropriate next steps.
Māori language
The first chunk of the text challenged us, because it was written in te reo.
But if you dive deep into the statement you will learn that a national commemorative event to mark the 50th anniversary of the Māori language petition being presented will be held at Parliament on 14 September.
Tourism
The Government will invest $2 million to support Go with Tourism, an initiative that connects jobseekers with employers, to help address the workforce shortage in the industry and accelerate economic recovery.
This statement reminds us that government support for the industry includes the $400m Tourism Recovery Package, the $200m Tourism Communities Plan, and the $54m Innovation Programme for Tourism Recovery.
Tourism Minister Stuart Nash says this funding went to tourism operators most affected by the border closure, and has helped them to gear up for the return of international visitors.
Launched in Auckland in 2019, Go with Tourism is a Government-supported initiative that aims to build the tourism and hospitality workforce. Funding from the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy enabled the programme to be expanded nationwide
The Government’s Tourism Snapshot was released today, which highlights some of the current projects underway to transition towards a regenerative tourism model.
Anything else?
Not when we checked, which left us to grapple with the speech by Peeni Henare and his acknowledgement of the work done by “dapaanz”.
Point of Order looked for clues in the text and found the speech might have been written by someone in Mahuta’s office, because Henare said he was
“… very pleased for us to come together, kanohi ki te kanohi, today.”
More helpfully, he said:
“I would like to recognise dapaanz as an organisation. Specifically, I would like to mihi Executive Director Sam White, the dapaanz Board and wider team, and of course, the entire mental health and addiction workforce, including the many of you here today.”
Ah. Mental health and addiction.
But the speech was marred by more of the argot employed by the Ardern government, cumbersomely blending English and te reo. Perhaps the speech writer is paid by the word.
Examples:
Essentially, we’re building a system that puts whānau and communities at the centre and is committed to pae ora – healthy futures – for all.
and
Caring for tāngata whaiora on this scale would not have been possible had it not been for this Government’s record investment in mental health.
Henare finished the speech without spelling out the full name of taapaanz.
We typed the letters into Google, which steered us to the home page of dapaanz.org.nz
Alas, this did not enlighten us, except to say:
Our Mission and Purpose
We foster excellence in addiction practice.
We ensure Aotearoa’s addiction workforce is ethical, competent and culturally-responsive so that whānau affected by addiction can flourish.
On the Facebook page, we learned a bit more.
The Addiction Practitioners Association of Aotearoa New Zealand (dapaanz) are the professional association for people working in addiction treatment
Great.
But what about the “D”?
We kept digging and found a site, therapycounselling.net – which steered us to DAPAANZ – Drug and Alcohol Practitioners’ Association Aotearoa–New Zealand.
By then we had been driven to drink.
Point of Order is a blog focused on politics and the economy run by veteran newspaper reporters Bob Edlin and Ian Templeton
2 comments:
I suspect universities and polytechs are so keen to produce courses that many have a huge make work element. An obtuse form of writing with a lot of make work obscure protracted expressions peculiar to the new "academia" has evolved and gets into public communications. It is vital that new Bill extends to include Council releases. The w.p. and the easy ability to produce screeds has become a hazard to communication not a boon. The armies of public service "communicators" should all be made to read Churchill.
The Bill would be a godsend if it covered the inclusion of maori twaddle... but this very urgently needed feature is specifically exempt....!! So it is all quite pointless.
if this bill will ensure that communication is made in clear english without mixing up another language for virtue-signalling, there might be a silver lining :)
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