KEY POINTS:
National is blaming Labour for high public servant pay but the Government says salaries are driven by competition for skilled staff.
National Party finance spokesman Bill English said new statistics showing incomes in Wellington had risen 21 per cent - compared with 9 per cent nationally - demonstrated the Government's lack of control of the bureaucracy.
The combination of soaring public sector pay rates and increased Government use of expensive contractors would rub taxpayers up the wrong way.
"Many Kiwi taxpayers are struggling with ever-higher mortgage rates - fuelled partly by large increases in spending by the Labour Government," Mr English said.
"Some of that increase, as the income figures for Wellington show, has gone into the bureaucracy."
National housing spokesman Phil Heatley also released figures yesterday showing the sum spent on consultants at Housing New Zealand had nearly doubled between between 2003 and 2007 to $12.6 million.
Housing NZ had hired 47 per cent more permanent staff between 2002-2006.
Mr English said this showed the Government was not being responsible with taxpayer funds.
State Services Minister Annette King said that salary rises were being driven by higher earnings for professionals in the public and private sectors.
Housing Minister Chris Carter said his department did far more now than in the past. "The bottom line is Housing New Zealand is doing an enormous range of things today that it wasn't doing in 2002."
This included multimillion-dollar major urban renewal projects and the Hobsonville project, in which Crown land was being subdivided to provide a mix of state and affordable housing.
Housing NZ also serviced the new Welcome Home Loan scheme and the Housing Innovation Fund.
In the 2002-2006 period, Housing NZ had built 8000 state houses.
Mr Heatley had also said the number of staff on $100,000 had increased from 39 to 80 between 2002-2006.
"Well, were they on $95,000 before?" Mr Carter asked. "The point is we are employing professionals like architects. That's what they charge and it's a tight job market."
- NZPA
