The National Anti-Corruption Commission is set to conduct another litmus test on Commonwealth integrity when it rolls out its survey again this year. Public servants will have the opportunity to participate in the integrity survey “later this year” following on from a similar exercise by the NACC in 2024. “The
There is an urban myth in journalism about an ancient editorial writer for The Times newspaper who was found dead, face-down on his typewriter, with just one word on the page: “Furthermore…” After decades of writing about Australian Public Service ethics and code-of-conduct matters, perhaps this column ought to sprinkle
One of the biggest publicly-funded racing upgrade projects in New South Wales has been given pitiful odds by the state’s official turf accountant: the NSW Auditor-General. In a withering form guide prepared following a $126 million splurge at the track by racing interests, including the NSW government post-COVID — $58.6
Senior Executive Service Band 1 Renee Cassidy has been hired as the National Disability Insurance Agency’s participant outcomes, evidence, and evaluation branch manager. The National Archives of Australia has promoted Phoebe Morrison to assistant director-general. The assistant secretary of financial compliance at the Department of Defence is now ...
Australian governments are touting the potential of AI to boost productivity in government services. But a growing body of research suggests this might not be benign for workers. Public sector AI users are increasingly aware of the risks of “hallucinations” and data biases in research and policy development. But emerging
Tasmanian public servants have voted up a headline 8.75% wage offer, following a number of government concessions. The government made a revised offer to the Community and Public Sector Union Tasmania (CPSU) on March 20: a 3% wage increase backdated to December 1, followed by 3% the next year, then
Yet another private member’s bill designed to introduce greater accountability of consulting firms has been killed off by a committee report. The finance and public administration committee declined to give the big tick to Senator Barbara Pocock‘s proposal to ban consulting firms a fortnight ago. Committee members from the same
How the contemporary debate on immigration plays out during the next few years will have profound effects on the wellbeing of Australians. Not just for the sensibilities of the 31% (!) of Australian residents who were born overseas (June 2024 figure), or for harmony in our streets, but for our
In 1976, the Royal Commission on Australian Government Administration, led by public service doyen H.C. ‘Nugget’ Coombs, considered the operations and efficiency of the federal public service. In so doing, it contemplated the relationship between ministers and secretaries, and ministerial accountability — that is to say, ministerial responsibility — for
The Tax Practitioners Board is urging accountants and other members of the public to report a recently deregistered tax agent if he continues offering services. TPB chair Peter de Cure wants people to report Parampreet Singh Rajput if he, or any of the eight entities in which he has an
In this final part of our ‘Government 3.0’ series, Victor Dominello and Carmem Domingues identify the dangers of ‘brain drain’ and ‘brain fry’. Part 3 covered the risks of passively accepting the baked-in bias of AI automation. Part 2 argued that faster processes are not the same as better public
A wage dispute between Victoria’s local government sector and the Australian Services Union, which covers municipal clerks and rank-and-file frontline workers, including garbage collectors, parking inspectors, and librarians, has boiled over into a full-blown rubbish-collection strike across three prominent councils and could soon hit as many as eight ...
The National Anti-Corruption Commission is set to conduct another litmus test on Commonwealth integrity when it rolls out its survey again this year. Public servants will have the opportunity to participate in the integrity survey “later this year” following on from a similar exercise by the NACC in 2024. “The
There is an urban myth in journalism about an ancient editorial writer for The Times newspaper who was found dead, face-down on his typewriter, with just one word on the page: “Furthermore…” After decades of writing about Australian Public Service ethics and code-of-conduct matters, perhaps this column ought to sprinkle
One of the biggest publicly-funded racing upgrade projects in New South Wales has been given pitiful odds by the state’s official turf accountant: the NSW Auditor-General. In a withering form guide prepared following a $126 million splurge at the track by racing interests, including the NSW government post-COVID — $58.6
Senior Executive Service Band 1 Renee Cassidy has been hired as the National Disability Insurance Agency’s participant outcomes, evidence, and evaluation branch manager. The National Archives of Australia has promoted Phoebe Morrison to assistant director-general. The assistant secretary of financial compliance at the Department of Defence is now ...
Australian governments are touting the potential of AI to boost productivity in government services. But a growing body of research suggests this might not be benign for workers. Public sector AI users are increasingly aware of the risks of “hallucinations” and data biases in research and policy development. But emerging
Tasmanian public servants have voted up a headline 8.75% wage offer, following a number of government concessions. The government made a revised offer to the Community and Public Sector Union Tasmania (CPSU) on March 20: a 3% wage increase backdated to December 1, followed by 3% the next year, then
Yet another private member’s bill designed to introduce greater accountability of consulting firms has been killed off by a committee report. The finance and public administration committee declined to give the big tick to Senator Barbara Pocock‘s proposal to ban consulting firms a fortnight ago. Committee members from the same
How the contemporary debate on immigration plays out during the next few years will have profound effects on the wellbeing of Australians. Not just for the sensibilities of the 31% (!) of Australian residents who were born overseas (June 2024 figure), or for harmony in our streets, but for our
In 1976, the Royal Commission on Australian Government Administration, led by public service doyen H.C. ‘Nugget’ Coombs, considered the operations and efficiency of the federal public service. In so doing, it contemplated the relationship between ministers and secretaries, and ministerial accountability — that is to say, ministerial responsibility — for
The Tax Practitioners Board is urging accountants and other members of the public to report a recently deregistered tax agent if he continues offering services. TPB chair Peter de Cure wants people to report Parampreet Singh Rajput if he, or any of the eight entities in which he has an
In this final part of our ‘Government 3.0’ series, Victor Dominello and Carmem Domingues identify the dangers of ‘brain drain’ and ‘brain fry’. Part 3 covered the risks of passively accepting the baked-in bias of AI automation. Part 2 argued that faster processes are not the same as better public
A wage dispute between Victoria’s local government sector and the Australian Services Union, which covers municipal clerks and rank-and-file frontline workers, including garbage collectors, parking inspectors, and librarians, has boiled over into a full-blown rubbish-collection strike across three prominent councils and could soon hit as many as eight ...
