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Sir Joseph Heenan, the most illustrious of all its secretaries, called the
Department of Internal Affairs 'the mother of all departments'. A rather
more earthy Australian friend of his called it the 'guts department'. In a
sense, both were right.
Written with liveliness and colour, illustrated with photographs, anecdotes
and rich detail, The Mother of All Departments brings to life the history of
the first and most important agency of government in nineteenth-century New
Zealand. It traces the evolution of the Department of Internal Affairs from
its genesis as the Colonial Secretary's Office in 1840 to the present day.
Having spawned the Public Works, Justice, Health, Housing and Social Welfare
departments it nonetheless still retains an extraordinary array of functions,
each a small but integral part of a smoothly running democracy. Internal Affairs
plays a significant role in some of the controversial issues of our day
including citizenship, the reform of local government, royal visits, and the
regulation of gambling and lotteries.
This book is available from Auckland University Press, Box 92-019, Auckland, New Zealand.
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