Ministry signage revealed to be nearly double its initial price tag

The $40,000 stone sign at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, former Defence House, in Stout Street in Wellington. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The cost of new signage at a government ministry head office has blown out to almost double its initial price tag - a cost that had already been slammed by the opposition this morning.

The cost of the new stone sign at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, in Stout Street in Wellington, was initially revealed to be $43,490.

But economic development minister Steven Joyce today admitted during parliamentary question time that was only the cost for the sign and its installation outside the newly refurbished art deco building that houses the MBIE.

The total cost was in fact closer to $70,000 if the cost of lighting, construction and resource consents were also taken into account.

He'd already come under criticism from Labour's science and innovation spokesman, David Cunliffe, who'd accused him of "an appalling overspend on signage" given the number of staff who've been let go in a recent restructure.

The MBIE had admitted to the spend-up on the sign, earlier this week, on the same day it announced at least 56 job cuts.

In Parliament this afternoon Mr Joyce faced additional criticism over the sign from Labour's Dunedin MP, David Clark, who'd posed the question of whether he thought the spend was a reasonable demonstration of the ministry's principal goal of "realising efficiency gains over time".

Mr Joyce admitted the spend, which he revealed totalled $67,339, was over the top and added he'd made this clear to the Ministry's chief executive.

"I have sought and received a strong assurance that nothing like this will be spent on signage again.

"I have made it absolutely clear to the chief executive that I do not condone the expenditure on the sign, he has accepted that and has given me a very clear assurance."

Mr Joyce further defended the ministry's recent spending with a dig at Labour.

"Overall the ministry has done a good job at reducing costs and actually the move to a refurbished building - unlike the new buildings that the Labour Government used to build around Wellington all the time - has actually saved $40million to $50million over 20 years."

But Mr Joyce conceded the sign expenditure was over the top.