Maurice Williamson - Report of the Y2K Task Force

Appendices

Summary of Recommendations

Task Force Recommends ..

Government should consider ..

6.0 Summary of Recommendations

6.1 The Prime Minister's Y2K Task Force recommends that:

the Government should position itself, and the Prime Minister in particular, as the leader in encouraging all organisations to make an appropriate response to the Year 2000 problem;
as a matter of urgency, the Government should set up and resource a Y2K Readiness Commission to advance the other recommendations in this report;
the Government should do all it can to strengthen the accountability of chief executives and board members in the wider public sector for the successful management of the Year 2000 problem;
the Government should establish a specialist review team within the State Services Commission to assess progress by key organisations in the wider public sector towards Year 2000 readiness and to advise the Government accordingly;
the Government should require all Crown agencies to include a Year 2000 compliance condition in all supply contracts as soon as possible, so that Year 2000 problems are not reintroduced to these agencies;
Parliament should be asked to enact legislation to limit the legal liability of those sharing non-commercial information in good faith, and the Y2K Readiness Commission should set up and manage electronic directories of Year 2000 related information for sharing among New Zealand organisations;
the Y2K Readiness Commission should provide a focus for collaboration by those organisations providing electricity, water, sewage disposal and health services and should facilitate the sharing of information and expertise to assist them towards readiness;
the Y2K Readiness Commission should manage a public relations-based information campaign aimed at key infrastructure sector organisations, underscoring the importance to New Zealand of their effective management of the Year 2000 problem;
the Y2K Readiness Commission should undertake a direct marketing campaign for small and medium-sized enterprises to create greater understanding and to facilitate access to technical information; and
the Government should commission the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to produce and distribute a series of information brochures on the Year 2000 problem.

6.2 Additionally, we believe the Government should consider:

more far-reaching changes in the tax treatment of Year 2000 expenditure than those recently proposed by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue on the grounds that full deductibility may encourage businesses to bring forward their Year 2000 spending; and
a mass-media public information campaign to inform the public about the Year 2000 problem.

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6.0 Summary of Recommendations
	6.1	The Prime Minister's Y2K Task Force recommends that: the Government should position itself, and the Prime Minister in particular, as the leader in encouraging all organisations to make an appropriate response to the Year 2000 problem; as a matter of urgency, the Government should set up and resource a Y2K Readiness Commission to advance the other recommendations in this report; the Government should do all it can to strengthen the accountability of chief executives and board members in the wider public sector for the successful management of the Year 2000 problem; the Government should establish a specialist review team within the State Services Commission to assess progress by key organisations in the wider public sector towards Year 2000 readiness and to advise the Government accordingly; the Government should require all Crown agencies to include a Year 2000 compliance condition in all supply contracts as soon as possible, so that Year 2000 problems are not reintroduced to these agencies; Parliament should be asked to enact legislation to limit the legal liability of those sharing non-commercial information in good faith, and the Y2K Readiness Commission should set up and manage electronic directories of Year 2000 related information for sharing among New Zealand organisations; the Y2K Readiness Commission should provide a focus for collaboration by those organisations providing electricity, water, sewage disposal and health services and should facilitate the sharing of information and expertise to assist them towards readiness; the Y2K Readiness Commission should manage a public relations-based information campaign aimed at key infrastructure sector organisations, underscoring the importance to New Zealand of their effective management of the Year 2000 problem; the Y2K Readiness Commission should undertake a direct marketing campaign for small and medium-sized enterprises to create greater understanding and to facilitate access to technical information; and the Government should commission the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to produce and distribute a series of information brochures on the Year 2000 problem.
	6.2	Additionally, we believe the Government should consider: more far-reaching changes in the tax treatment of Year 2000 expenditure than those recently proposed by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue on the grounds that full deductibility may encourage businesses to bring forward their Year 2000 spending; and a mass-media public information campaign to inform the public about the Year 2000 problem.