The Government has had to start from scratch on ways to measure some parts of its work programme, delaying its promised public release of a progress report, because it has had to work out how to do it.

In September last year, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern used a TEDx-style talk in Auckland, alongside Coalition partners New Zealand First and the Green Party, to launch and talk up the Government’s 12 priorities.

They fell under the themes of economy, wellbeing and leadership, with policy initiatives and work streams on how to achieve them.

However, the Government still hasn't decided how to measure its progress or rank itself and as a result, the first summary has been delayed.

Former Labour Party staffer Phil Quin told Kate Hawkesby the Government doesn't know how to measure certain priorities.

"They've laid out a series of agenda items...that are just really hard to measure and I think they are struggling to work out how to convey progress against things like 'grow and share more fairly New Zealand's prosperity', how are they going to translate that into meaningful, measurable data."

"For measures to be meaningful, they have to be based on some kind of baseline data. So when they say all New Zealanders should have a warm dry home, what's the baseline? How many don't live in a warm, dry home now? What's the goal for 2020? What's the goal for 2025?"

He said the Government's goals are extremely vague.

"These goals are so vague and amorphous that it's really hard for the Government to convey progress."

Quin said this backs up the argument that the Government is all talk and no action.
"At the moment, the most measurable policy initiative of the Government is KiwiBuild abnd KiwiBuild is fast looking like New Zealand's equivalent of Donald Trump's wall."

Previously, Jacinda Ardern said the public would be able to track how the 12 priorities were tracking, and in a Cabinet paper proactively released at the same time, she proposed to regularly publish progress updates setting out what had been achieved, what had changed in key work programmes and why.

The work programme was also to be reviewed twice a year, with the first due this month.

But an appendix to the Cabinet paper that was leaked to the Herald at the time detailing the work programme showed there were no mechanisms for accurately measuring progress.

The Government's themes

Build a productive, sustainable and inclusive economy

• Grow and share more fairly New Zealand's prosperity.

• Deliver responsible governance with a broader measure of success.

• Support thriving and sustainable regions.

• Transition to a clean, green and carbon-neutral New Zealand.

Improve the wellbeing of New Zealanders and their families
• Ensure everyone is earning, learning, caring or volunteering.
• Support healthier, safer, and more connected communities.
• Ensure everyone has a warm, dry home.
• Make New Zealand the best place in the world to be a child.

Provide new leadership by government
• Deliver transparent, transformative and compassionate government.
• Build closer partnerships with Māori.
• Value who we are as a country.
• Create an international reputation we can be proud of.