The National-Act-NZ First coalition Government is set to release a vast tranche of the early briefings new ministers got from government department officials today.

The Briefings to the Incoming Ministers (Bims) are produced by public servants after each change of government or change of minister and usually set out trouble spots and challenges looming in each portfolio area, some preliminary advice on government policy as well as a basic introduction to how the government department operates and the ministers’ responsibilities.

NZ Herald journalists are compiling the highlights of the briefings, due to be released late morning on government department websites.

Story continues under live blog.

The 100-day plan

The Bims will be closely read this year to see what the officials’ verdicts are of any difficulties in implementing the new Government’s policies and for any comment on how its proposed spending cuts might affect services.

The new Government is trying to prune spending in government departments – Finance Minister Nicola Willis has set spending cut targets of 6.5 per cent or 7.5 per cent on public service departments, but has promised that in key areas the savings will be put back into the front line – such as in health, education, and police.

The three-party coalition Government was formed on November 24 last year and ministers were sworn in on November 27. It is currently working its way through its so-called 100-days plan, which was confirmed on November 29.

The deadline for those projects is the first week of March. However, some of its big promises, including National’s tax cuts, will wait until the Budget in May.

The Bims likely to grab attention will be those in the economic area as National prepares its tax cuts plan – the Government has faced early criticism over how it plans to pay for its tax cuts, which will be through a combination of cuts to the public sector and increasing revenue in some areas, including, controversially, by halting the previous government’s smokefree moves.

There will also be attention on the law and order area after this week’s focus on police warnings about the difficulties of the NZ First coalition agreement promise to recruit and train 500 more police than usual in the first two years.

Police Minister Mark Mitchell had said that would now be extended to three years because Police had warned it was already hard to fill the current recruitment slots, however, he had to backtrack after NZ First cried foul and kept it at the two years stipulated in the coalition agreement.