In the politically, socially, and internationally turbulent landscape of 1970s Australia, two figures dominated the national stage: Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser. This article marks the beginning of a seven-part series exploring how these leaders envisioned and enacted transformative change. Drawing primarily from their election speeches — sourced from the
Government expenditure on consulting services can be reviewed under existing processes without the need for a new committee, according to former public service commissioner Andrew Podger. Podger’s submission is in response to a committee inquiry by the financial and public administration committee looking at whether a committee into procurement proposed
More than 31% of public servants are planning to look for their next job in the next six months, according to The Mandarin’s reader survey of public sector employees. The insight was one of several questions put to public servants in the ‘Frank and Fearless’ survey for 2025. More than
Former South Australian premier Jay Weatherill will replace Stephen Smith as Australia’s most senior representative in the United Kingdom. Weatherill will commence his new role next year, with a clear mission to advance Australia’s national interests and the trilateral AUKUS partnership. On Monday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced Weatherill’s ...
The NSW state government has stumped up $800,000 for the budget of its corruption watchdog to deal with what it describes as a “steady rise” in corruption inquiries. Treasurer Daniel Mookhey announced the additional resourcing over the weekend, flagging that it would help ICAC establish an extra investigations team and
Queensland’s cross-border commissioner Ian Leavers has died at home. Police report Leavers was found at his house around 9.50am. The death is not being treated as suspicious, but investigations are ongoing. Premier David Crisafulli paid tribute to Leavers. “Leavers has been a strong voice for the challenges facing communities and
Australian Public Servants will have more reasons than expected to return to parliament this year, as the Senate launches a number of new inquiries. Two new select committees have been formed, likely to solicit evidence from central agencies. The select committee into productivity will undertake a year-long examination of this
Public policy that is bereft of empirically based analysis will generally fail, often dismally. The quality of government decisions, the effectiveness of their implementation and the evaluation of their impact all depend on the collection and interpretation of evidence. The public’s trust depends on how effectively governments show citizens that
In an era of rapid change and rising public expectations, governments face a critical challenge: attracting and retaining the right people for the right roles. This isn’t just about filling vacancies, but building capability, safeguarding integrity and delivering public value. The stakes are high. From frontline service delivery to policy
WHAT WAS CLAIMED Changing to decimalised dollars from pounds occurred without the consent of the Australian people and was unlawful. OUR VERDICT False. The constitution empowers the Commonwealth to legislate over currency, and decimalisation was an election pledge in 1958. AAP FACTCHECK — Australia’s shift from pounds and shillings to
A proposed law to create a committee to review government contracts is ambiguous, unclear and confusing in scope, according to a submission from the Department of Finance. Finance responded to an inquiry into a private members’ bill initiated by Senator Richard Colbeck that proposes the establishment of a parliamentary committee
Last week, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) and Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) unveiled some new data on the impacts of serious crime in Australia. The ACIC unveiled Opening the Books: The impact of serious and organised crime on Australia in 2025 — a title that immediately made me want to
In the politically, socially, and internationally turbulent landscape of 1970s Australia, two figures dominated the national stage: Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser. This article marks the beginning of a seven-part series exploring how these leaders envisioned and enacted transformative change. Drawing primarily from their election speeches — sourced from the
Government expenditure on consulting services can be reviewed under existing processes without the need for a new committee, according to former public service commissioner Andrew Podger. Podger’s submission is in response to a committee inquiry by the financial and public administration committee looking at whether a committee into procurement proposed
More than 31% of public servants are planning to look for their next job in the next six months, according to The Mandarin’s reader survey of public sector employees. The insight was one of several questions put to public servants in the ‘Frank and Fearless’ survey for 2025. More than
Former South Australian premier Jay Weatherill will replace Stephen Smith as Australia’s most senior representative in the United Kingdom. Weatherill will commence his new role next year, with a clear mission to advance Australia’s national interests and the trilateral AUKUS partnership. On Monday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced Weatherill’s ...
The NSW state government has stumped up $800,000 for the budget of its corruption watchdog to deal with what it describes as a “steady rise” in corruption inquiries. Treasurer Daniel Mookhey announced the additional resourcing over the weekend, flagging that it would help ICAC establish an extra investigations team and
Queensland’s cross-border commissioner Ian Leavers has died at home. Police report Leavers was found at his house around 9.50am. The death is not being treated as suspicious, but investigations are ongoing. Premier David Crisafulli paid tribute to Leavers. “Leavers has been a strong voice for the challenges facing communities and
Australian Public Servants will have more reasons than expected to return to parliament this year, as the Senate launches a number of new inquiries. Two new select committees have been formed, likely to solicit evidence from central agencies. The select committee into productivity will undertake a year-long examination of this
Public policy that is bereft of empirically based analysis will generally fail, often dismally. The quality of government decisions, the effectiveness of their implementation and the evaluation of their impact all depend on the collection and interpretation of evidence. The public’s trust depends on how effectively governments show citizens that
In an era of rapid change and rising public expectations, governments face a critical challenge: attracting and retaining the right people for the right roles. This isn’t just about filling vacancies, but building capability, safeguarding integrity and delivering public value. The stakes are high. From frontline service delivery to policy
WHAT WAS CLAIMED Changing to decimalised dollars from pounds occurred without the consent of the Australian people and was unlawful. OUR VERDICT False. The constitution empowers the Commonwealth to legislate over currency, and decimalisation was an election pledge in 1958. AAP FACTCHECK — Australia’s shift from pounds and shillings to
A proposed law to create a committee to review government contracts is ambiguous, unclear and confusing in scope, according to a submission from the Department of Finance. Finance responded to an inquiry into a private members’ bill initiated by Senator Richard Colbeck that proposes the establishment of a parliamentary committee
Last week, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) and Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) unveiled some new data on the impacts of serious crime in Australia. The ACIC unveiled Opening the Books: The impact of serious and organised crime on Australia in 2025 — a title that immediately made me want to
