Style guide for BIMs 2023
As at 18 October 2023
What
How
Name of the Department
Department of Internal Affairs
and then: the Department (rather than DIA)
Branch names
In full, in English. For example:
• Service Delivery and Operations
• Regulation and Policy
Job titles
As per 1840
References to Ministers
Minister (with a capital M)
Use portfolio name, for example:
• Minister for Racing (rather than a person’s name)
Ministerial titles (note
Minister of Internal Affairs
different uses of ‘for’ and
Minister of Local Government
‘of’) – some titles are
Minister for Racing
subject to change
Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector
Minister for Digital Economy and Communications
Minister Responsible for Ministerial Services
Use of te reo
In logos where it is already included
On the front cover, as a welcome
Where te reo appears in the official name of an external
organisation or job title of an external person
When referring to all our He Tohu documents at the same time:
• He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga | Declaration of
Independence of the United Tribes of New Zealand
• Te Tiriti o Waitangi | Treaty of Waitangi
under the Official Information Act 1982
• The Women's Suffrage Petition | Te Petihana Whakamana Pōti
Wāhine
Otherwise, defer to English. For example:
• Treaty of Waitangi (rather than Te Tiriti o Waitangi)
• Department of Internal Affairs (rather than Te Tari Taiwhenua)
Released • New Zealand (rather than Aotearoa)
Acronyms
Only use when necessary
Write in full at first use. For example:
• Government Chief Digital Officer (GCDO)
Titles of the Chief
List in the following order in the organisational chart:
Executive
Chief Executive
Secretary for Internal Affairs
Secretary for Local Government
Government Chief Digital Officer
IN-CONFIDENCE
Grammar and punctuation Follow the existin
g style guide for DIA. To note in particular:
• Percentages: use % – 16% (not 16 percent or per cent)
• Money: write million in full – $28 mil ion (not $28m)
• No Oxford commas, which is a comma placed immediately after
the second-to-last term in a series. For example:
o Shoes, coats, and hats
o Shoes, coats and hats
under the Official Information Act 1982
Released
IN-CONFIDENCE
Document Outline
