H.—l4.

Efficiency of the Service. I am pleased again to report that the general standard of efficiency throughout the Public Service has been well maintained, and it is pleasing to be able to place on record the able manner in which the Service as a whole has met the demands that have been made upon it, notwithstanding the abnormal conditions which at present exist. Praise is due to Permanent Heads, controlling officers, and their staffs alike for such a satisfactory result. Organization and Management. The duties of the Public Service Commissioner are not confined to such matters as the appointment of staff, the classification of officers, and the general oversight over staff conditions. Reference to section 12 of the Public Service Act will show that he has other duties of far reaching importance. This section requires the Commissioner to investigate the efficiency, economy, and general working of each Department both separately and in its relation to other Departments. Matters brought under review are as follows : — Improved organization and procedure ; Simplification of work and introduction of mechanical appliances ; Co-ordination of work ; Limitation of staffs to actual requirements ; Utilization of staff to best advantage ; Improvement in training of officers ; and Institution of standard practice and uniform instructions for carrying out recurring work. For all practical purposes all Departments under the Public Service Act may be regarded as one large Department under the general control of the Public Service Commissioner, who is responsible for — (a) The general scheme of organization under which the staffs are required to do their work ; (b) The character of the personnel employed ; and (c) The methods of accounting and the office systems or business methods employed. In these matters the Public Service Commissioner works in close co-operation with the Treasury and the Controller and Auditor-General. By these means is secured the " general oversight of the Civil Service in order that its strength and its component parts may be most effectively employed," referred to in the Fourth Report of the Royal Commission on the Civil Service in Great Britain in 1914 as being one of the most important factors in a well-organized and efficient Service. Delegation of Authority. The delegation of legislative powers by Order in Council is one that vitally affects the Public Service. Not only in New Zealand, but also in Great Britain, there has been considerable criticism of such action by the Legislature in the exercise of its administrative duties. Leaving aside the fact that such delegation is a consequence of developments in the constitutional organization, particularly during the past half century, it is to be pointed out that most of those who voice the criticism overlook the fact that the growth in volume of delegated legislation has become necessary owing to increased demands for new and detailed legislation. These demands have arisen not from the Public Service, but from the people themselves. These demands call for the regulation by Government of private activities of varying kinds and in different degree, implying the need for legislative control with more or less administrative supervision by officers or quasi-officers of the Public Service in connection with a gradually increasing number of industries, trades, and commercial undertakings. It is clear that critics do not appear to be alive to the evolutionary change in public administration which has been imperceptibly brought about by the

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