Abstract:
New Zealand’s approach to gendering policy has been evolving in the past four decades. Through much of the 1970s and 1980s, women’s organisations maintained an autonomous and advocacy role (working outside the state). Throughout the 1990s, however, as part of neoliberal moves of state procurement, women’s community organisations were co-opted as part of the service delivery arm of the policy machinery (working with the state). By the turn of the century, however, commensurate with the Third Way/social democracy philosophies of the government of the time, politically active women and organisations were increasing being engaged by the state as partners in strategic design of policy (working in the state). But, is ‘inclusion’ in policymaking structures also ‘influence’ on gender policy? Drawing on interviews with community representatives in sectors ranging from abortion and sexual violence to workers’ rights, this paper offers a critique of the increasing emphasis on inclusion of community to engender policy. It highlights that to understand the merits of inclusion, it is necessary to draw out the differential and complex relationships between community groups and the government. It develops the idea of influence fields and categorises organisations by their roles (delivery/ advocacy), funding sources (independent/governmental) and accountability (to government/other bodies). The data shows that the factors that make for influence in gender policy are more complicated than merely the inclusion of women or their representatives. Rather, inclusion of community in policy is effective only when studied against the wider influence field that it occupies.