The Hon Maurice Williamson has been in Parliament since 1987, when he won the Pakuranga seat for the National Party. He has held the seat ever since. After the 2008 general election, Mr Williamson was appointed as Minister of Statistics. Having also been Minister of Statistics throughout the nineties, he is in a unique position to recognise the developments that have occurred at Statistics NZ over the last ten years. The Minister has a particular interest in ICT (information, communication and technology) and is a fellow of the New Zealand Computer Society. He is impressed by the work that Statistics NZ is doing in the area of geospatial technology, seeing this as the next technological revolution. "The internet and information technologies are advancing all the time and the idea that you can represent data in a visual and 3-dimensional way is so powerful and exciting," he says. |
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The Minister is also a supporter of Infoshare, a web-based tool that allows users to access Statistics NZ’s data, and the way Statistics NZ is promoting its use to New Zealanders.
"New Zealanders need to know that this information is out there and freely available for their use."
Mr Williamson is supportive of the work that Statistics NZ is doing across the Official Statistics System (OSS). All government departments are members of the OSS, and he is working with his colleagues to ensure that well-informed decisions are being made using official statistics.
"In the current economic climate the value of relevant, timely and robust information on the economy, society and environment, is essential to making well informed decisions for the country.
"Over the next three years my main priorities for the Statistics portfolio are to fill critical gaps in the country’s official statistics and to ensure the quality and timeliness of existing statistics."
Mr Williamson is a busy minister with five portfolios across a number of important areas: building and construction, small business, customs, land information and statistics. He is committed to watching the bottom line and reducing costs wherever possible, while maintaining service levels to the New Zealand public.
"Reducing costs to businesses and households through initiatives aimed at increasing integration of existing information sources, reducing duplication across government and increasing our value for money are all priorities high on the agenda as well."
The Minister is working with Statistics NZ to progress these priorities and deliver better, smarter, and more accessible official statistics services.