By AUDREY YOUNG
National is accusing the Government of deception, saying it is hiding an increase in Beehive staffing through secondments from departments - and then making the departments concerned foot the bill.
"The Prime Minister came into Government on a platform of integrity and running a frugal operation," said National leader
Bill English.
"The figures uncovered by National would suggest that platform is now also a victim of the rotting-home syndrome."
The number of staff in ministerial offices has climbed from 190 in July 1998, when National was in Government, to 233 in July this year.
Mr English said that the number of staff in those offices, who were on secondment from Government departments or agencies, had risen from 53 in 1998 to 82 this year.
Yet the cost of secondees' salaries to Ministerial Services - the body that pays ministerial staff - has actually dropped, from $2.6 million in 1998 to $1.2 million this year.
"The only explanation for this," said Mr English, "is that the salaries of the secondees are being picked up by the departments and not by Ministerial Services in an effort to hide the real costs.
"In other words, Clark's Administration is getting extra staff, but individual Government departments are picking up the bill."
Helen Clark said it might suit departments very well to have staff in ministers offices and there was no evidence that the departments were hiring more staff to replace secondees.
She said that Mr English was just talking about "rats and mice".
She accepted that there were more secondees but said she ran a "busy reforming Government" - and "busy reforming Governments need staff and advisers".
