Editorial The Dominion Post: Clean up immigration now

Alarm bells should be ringing loud and long after the delivery of the results of the auditor-general's inquiry into immigration matters.

The report is damning. It found Immigration New Zealand is an organisation not doing its job, and one with a culture that dissuades staff from raising their concerns about that fact.

It found it is an organisation that focuses too much on pushing through the paperwork and not enough on what is on those papers. The team that carried out the investigation found that out of 436 visa and permit decisions it examined, 21 per cent were either questionable or poor. Only 66 per cent were good quality (the rest were adequate). The Pacific division of the service produced the worst results 42 per cent of the decisions made there were either questionable or poor.

Auditor-General Kevin Brady puts that down to poor planning before the division was set up in 2005 followed by a failure to recognise and deal effectively or early enough with the cumulative picture of concern that was building.

Worryingly, the report also uncovered what Mr Brady calls "excessive variation between branches". Put more plainly, it is clear there are elements of a lottery to the process the outcome of a visa application can depend on which office deals with it.

And then there are the backlogs. One office had more than 2000 temporary and 700 permanent applications sitting in the in basket. Another had applications that had been lodged in 2005 that still had not been assigned to a staff member by September last year.

The only saving grace to be found in the report is its conclusion that "generally, Immigration New Zealand staff act with integrity and probity when making visa and permit decisions" and that there are systems in place to investigate allegations of misconduct when they arise, and to take appropriate action. It is competency, not corruption that is the issue.

That is small comfort. Gaining New Zealand residency or even the right to visit is, as the report noted, highly prized by many people from other nations. For those involved, the decisions are life-changing. New Zealanders also have a vested interest in who is given permission to come here, either as a visitor or as a resident.

That means the system that makes those decisions must be impeccable, efficient and robust. Those wanting to come here are entitled to well-judged decisions, delivered quickly. Those already living here are entitled to a system that ensures those who settle here met the criteria that have been laid down for immigrants.

Mr Brady's report makes it all too clear that New Zealand does not have that now.

New Immigration Minister Jonathan Coleman says the service needs "a total overhaul of processes and a change in culture" and promises that he will be calling in chief executive Christopher Blake and State Services Commissioner Iain Rennie to agree on a timetable for change, which he vows they will be held to.

They are not the only ones. The auditor-general's report has shown where the problems are, and recommended how to solve them. It is now Mr Coleman who is responsible for making sure they are fixed, and fixed quickly.

(Source; Editor The Dominion Post)