How AI can transform public services without hollowing out human judgment Governments everywhere are rushing to use AI – clearing backlogs, digitising services, and chasing productivity gains. But what if speed is the wrong metric? What if the tools we’re adopting to make government faster are actually making government
Nobody likes being ordered around. Government is, at its most fundamental level, unavoidably about just that — laying down the law, ordering people around. Consultation is what governments rely on to take the curse off this. Just about every government decision is preceded by a call for public comment, and
What if policy innovation were an Olympic sport? It’s a little counterintuitive, perhaps. But if the Greeks could beat the Germans at philosopher’s football, maybe the Olympian framing (citius, altius, fortius — faster, higher, stronger) might be a useful way to think about the purpose and possibilities of a more
The Australian Taxation Office is the target of yet another review by the sector’s ombud into its service provision to tax agents, following recent criticisms of its phone services. Ombud Ruth Owen announced a fresh review after tax agents expressed concern about the reliability of the ATO’s online platforms during
The federal government has called on former Australian Energy Regulator CEO Anthea Harris to coordinate the national fuel supply taskforce. As Australia’s “fuel tsar”, Harris will oversee the management of supply issues triggered by the Middle East conflict. According to the government, Harris will:* Lead a new fuel supply taskforce
When wondering if there is some generic world view animating the current range of major unresolved policy issues — such as welfare compliance, inequality, housing affordability, aged care, youth crime, climate blindness and food insecurity — one word keeps recurring. Our national policy framework is all too often cruel to
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has launched a dashboard to help the financial services regulator make decisions on enforcement activity in the sector. The dashboard is designed to provide the regulator and its stakeholders with better information on complaints against financial services advisers and on how advisory firms handle
The rollout of the Queensland government’s digital licencing credential has continued in earnest, with the Crisafulli government announcing that “more than 56,000 taxi, rideshare, limousine, and bus drivers can now access and use their credentials in the Queensland Digital Licence app.” While the expansion is incremental, and although large in
The NSW Premier’s Department has quietly told government agencies they should try to sell the public service’s flexible work conditions before offering candidates more cash for roles through special allowances. That’s despite agencies being told to require more workers to be physically in the office under the controversial “workplace
The release of the national infrastructure priority list this month offers a blueprint for Australia’s critical needs over the next decade. The infrastructure priority list (IPL) forms the basis of independent, evidence-based advice to the government on the infrastructure investment needed to strengthen national transport connectivity, ports and ...
The Victorian Auditor-General’s Office (VAGO) has given the Victorian government’s myki modernisation contract a shaky thumbs up. In 2023, the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) contracted Conduent to manage the state’s digital public transport ticketing system. The $1.7 billion contract includes management of the existing myki system, the
In a recent piece for The Mandarin, I discussed new research showing that policy fatalism is growing in both Australia and the UK — and explored what that means for those who work in and around government. This follow-up piece asks an associated question: can the Australian Public Service realistically
How AI can transform public services without hollowing out human judgment Governments everywhere are rushing to use AI – clearing backlogs, digitising services, and chasing productivity gains. But what if speed is the wrong metric? What if the tools we’re adopting to make government faster are actually making government
Nobody likes being ordered around. Government is, at its most fundamental level, unavoidably about just that — laying down the law, ordering people around. Consultation is what governments rely on to take the curse off this. Just about every government decision is preceded by a call for public comment, and
What if policy innovation were an Olympic sport? It’s a little counterintuitive, perhaps. But if the Greeks could beat the Germans at philosopher’s football, maybe the Olympian framing (citius, altius, fortius — faster, higher, stronger) might be a useful way to think about the purpose and possibilities of a more
The Australian Taxation Office is the target of yet another review by the sector’s ombud into its service provision to tax agents, following recent criticisms of its phone services. Ombud Ruth Owen announced a fresh review after tax agents expressed concern about the reliability of the ATO’s online platforms during
The federal government has called on former Australian Energy Regulator CEO Anthea Harris to coordinate the national fuel supply taskforce. As Australia’s “fuel tsar”, Harris will oversee the management of supply issues triggered by the Middle East conflict. According to the government, Harris will:* Lead a new fuel supply taskforce
When wondering if there is some generic world view animating the current range of major unresolved policy issues — such as welfare compliance, inequality, housing affordability, aged care, youth crime, climate blindness and food insecurity — one word keeps recurring. Our national policy framework is all too often cruel to
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has launched a dashboard to help the financial services regulator make decisions on enforcement activity in the sector. The dashboard is designed to provide the regulator and its stakeholders with better information on complaints against financial services advisers and on how advisory firms handle
The rollout of the Queensland government’s digital licencing credential has continued in earnest, with the Crisafulli government announcing that “more than 56,000 taxi, rideshare, limousine, and bus drivers can now access and use their credentials in the Queensland Digital Licence app.” While the expansion is incremental, and although large in
The NSW Premier’s Department has quietly told government agencies they should try to sell the public service’s flexible work conditions before offering candidates more cash for roles through special allowances. That’s despite agencies being told to require more workers to be physically in the office under the controversial “workplace
The release of the national infrastructure priority list this month offers a blueprint for Australia’s critical needs over the next decade. The infrastructure priority list (IPL) forms the basis of independent, evidence-based advice to the government on the infrastructure investment needed to strengthen national transport connectivity, ports and ...
The Victorian Auditor-General’s Office (VAGO) has given the Victorian government’s myki modernisation contract a shaky thumbs up. In 2023, the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) contracted Conduent to manage the state’s digital public transport ticketing system. The $1.7 billion contract includes management of the existing myki system, the
In a recent piece for The Mandarin, I discussed new research showing that policy fatalism is growing in both Australia and the UK — and explored what that means for those who work in and around government. This follow-up piece asks an associated question: can the Australian Public Service realistically
