Even with your iPod headphones at full blast it’s hard to not hear the calls for more mergers, consolidation or whatever words are being used to describe the need for greater collaboration that has been driven by the recession. Every week the international NGO and third sector media we watch has articles about the pressure for non profits, charities voluntary organisations to merge. In the UK the National Council for Voluntary Organisations set up a unit to advise charities on these issues.
There can be glimmers of economic recovery being talked about in New Zealand but this will have little short term impact on the health environment. In his Nordmeyer Lecture in September, Minister Ryall told the audience that the
‘Government has had to borrow $30 billion dollars to protect vital social services such as health’ and ‘next year the total new spending allocation for the entire government, because we are in deficits and have to borrow it, may well be limited to around $1.1 billion. Maintaining a $750 million dollar share for health will be unlikely unless there is a significant turn-around in our finances. So next year money in health will be even tighter.’
Are we ready?
Joining up, consolidating, merging, sharing, streamlining, reducing duplication; the thesaurus has been exhausted to deliver the message. Increasingly the expectation of the Government is that the public sector will comply and plans are afoot to begin the consolidation it is inevitable that the same pressure will come onto the community sector very soon.
Are we ready?
