Laurie Patton

Laurie Patton is a prominent public interest advocacy and marketing/communications practitioner. He is a former political advisor, journalist and media executive. He is the NSW regional convenor for the Australian Republic Movement.

Laurie's recent articles

A battle between our governments and the ‘Mandarins’ who serve them

A battle between our governments and the ‘Mandarins’ who serve them

Former prime minister Tony Abbott claims “unelected and unaccountable” public servants stymied his government. History records a long running battle between our governments and the so-called ‘mandarins’ who are supposedly there to serve them

We have the right to expect certain standards, rules and regulations to apply to political staffers

We have the right to expect certain standards, rules and regulations to apply to political staffers

For political staffers to be effective, and therefore justifiably paid for by the public, they need to be governed in a manner that protects them to the same extent as public servants who do their job diligently and honestly. Their role should not be elevated to the point that they become a highly visible part of the political landscape.

Double fault: a pandemic of government incompetence

Double fault: a pandemic of government incompetence

Novak Djokovic may have thought he'd beaten the system when he entered Australia. Instead he shone a light on our government's lack of accountability.

New Australian republic model gives everyone a say on our head of state

New Australian republic model gives everyone a say on our head of state

Other than allowing us to choose our head of state, the Australian Choice model leaves intact the Westminster system's checks and balances.

Space invaders: better broadband or sky vandalism?

Space invaders: better broadband or sky vandalism?

We must ensure that private companies placing objects in space dont create another environmental disaster like the plastic pollution in our oceans.

Assange ruling sensible, but no implications for press freedom

The judge accepted the legal arguments presented by US lawyers, saw no inherent threat of potential injustice, but denied the extradition request on health grounds. However, dumping, unfiltered, thousands of files on to the web is not journalism.

NBN update. Lets not compound a history of poor policymaking by people who claim to be good economic managers

In years to come Malcolm Turnbull will be remembered as the communications minister who, under instruction from then prime minister Tony Abbott, demolished Labors 21st Century National Broadband Network. But another prominent politician had earlier inflicted enduring damage to any nascent aim of becoming an innovation nation and set us back as a player in an emerging digitally enabled world. Are we heading towards a repeat of this mistake in telecommunications policy?

Data Retention An act of blindness

A Parliamentary Joint Committee on Security and Intelligence (PJCIS) report into the Data Retention Act has made 22 recommendations that, if accepted, would lead to increased transparency, raise the threshold for when data can be accessed, and reduce overall access to our telecommunications data.

A white flag moment on the NBN was inevitable.

This weeks capitulation thats what it is by communications minister Paul Fletcher sets us on a course that hopefully will see Australia start moving in the right direction again as we head further into a digitally-enabled future. Its a welcomed move, but wed be wise to take a close look at the detail in his National Press Club address before getting too excited.

NBN Debacle. Wherefore art thou, minister?

What has been described as the countrys all-time biggest infrastructure debacle - the National Broadband Network - is a financial and technological mess.

LAURIE PATTON. The Opposition Leader is correct. We need a decentralisation plan

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese is right. In his latest vision speech he pointed to the benefits of decentralisation. Its time we stopped cramming more and more people into already overcrowded cities.

Badly designed. Badly marketed. The virus that has infected the Australian government

In the same week that Labor front-benchers Kristina Keneally and Tim Watts released a discussion paper examining Australias cyber resilience the Government was battling to convince us to download an app that IT experts and lawyers warn has basic design flaws.

LAURIE PATTON. Three Blind Mice Caught in the Netflix trap

Australias commercial television networks are in trouble. Not simply because of the Coronavirus but because they failed to develop effective strategies to counter the arrival of Netflix and other streaming platforms something anticipated long before it happened.

LAURIE PATTON. Public administration accountability is not what it used to be!

Blame shifting between state and federal government agencies over how a cruise ship carrying people suspected to have the Coronavirus was allowed into the port of Sydney has shown up, yet again, the lack of public administration accountability in this country.

LAURIE PATTON. A virtual solution to 21st Century government

As most of us are holed-up in our homes working or studying online as a response to the Coronavirus a bunch of politicians are ignoring medical advice and gathering together in Canberra. Perhaps its time for a virtual parliament?

LAURIE PATTON. Let's add fixing the NBN to our post Coronavirus planning

People are being required to work from home. Students are doing lessons online. Telehealth consultations are now being bulk-billed. All this will change the way we use the Internet forever.

LAURIE PATTON. An opportunity for the National COVID-19 Coordination Commission to prove its mettle

The National COVID-19 Coordination Commission provides an opportunity for Australia to start planning for a post Coronavirus era lets begin by fixing the NBN.

LAURIE PATTON. Telstra bells the broadband cat and spays NBN Co.

Telstras decision this week to only offer a maximum 50Mbps plan to more than half its NBN customers is another setback in the quest for #BetterBroadband.

LAURIE PATTON. Schools Out Time for better governance and oversight in the education sector

The principal resigned, his deputy stood aside, but apparently the school board knew nothing.

LAURIE PATTON. Sports rorts shows need for public sector re-think

The buck has to stop somewhere. Despite the prime ministers best efforts when it comes to the so-called sport rorts affair its unlikely to stop with a temporarily sacked minister.

How the OTIS group did Albanese a favour

A group of disgruntled federal Labor politicians known as the OTIS group and dubbed by some the 'outside the inner sanctum group' has helped Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese in a number of ways they probably didnt intend.

LAURIE PATTON. NBN latest: Oh dear, what can the matter be?

Ive argued before, the only viable solution is to start replacing all the dud technology and that requires that we take the politics out and develop a bipartisan solution.

LAURIE PATTON. The Data Retention Act. How not to introduce complex legislation.

Appearing before a Parliamentary inquiry into the Data Retention Act the Commonwealth Ombudsman Michael Manthorpe revealed that law enforcement agencies have obtained individuals web browsing history without a warrant.

LAURIE PATTON. Overexposed lets hear from someone else!

In the film classic Casablanca, whenever a crime is committed the local police captain orders his officers to round up the usual suspects. Political commentary, in fact public commentary in general in Australia suffers from the Casablanca effect. The same old bunch of over-opinionated fringe players who see themselves as instant experts on anything and everything. Never slow to pop their heads up with a controversial quote for the media.

LAURIE PATTON. Its now or never for the NBN

Last week submissions closed for a parliamentary inquiry into the National Broadband Network. TelSoc, of which I recently became vice-president, lodged a submission prepared by a working group of highly qualified industry experts.

LAURIE PATTON. Catch 22.0 We wouldnt need inquiries if public administration wasnt so broken UPDATED

Predictably, we are seeing calls for a Royal Commission into the bushfires that have Australia in crisis mode right now either in the genuine hope of finding answers or finding someone to blame.

LAURIE PATTON. My New Years wish more collaborative technology policy development

A report released by communications minister Paul Fletcher has confirmed that so-called Internet piracy declined dramatically following the arrival of Netflix and other online streaming services debunking the need for site-blocking laws controversially introduced following a well-funded lobbying effort by local representatives of the Hollywood studios.

LAURIE PATTON. Unintended consequences: How NSW planning laws have stolen democracy from ratepayers

One of the fundamental principles of the democratic system enjoyed in Australia for more than 200 years is the right to make representations to your local MP, or in the case of local government to your elected councillors. Regrettably, changes made last year to NSW planning laws have denied ratepayers this ability and effectively handed unbridled power to unelected council bureaucrats.

LAURIE PATTON. The Assange dilemma updated. What is journalism in the online age?

Its time for more humane treatment of Julian Assange. Guilt or innocence aside nobody should be treated the way he is allegedly being treated. More than 60 doctors have now written an open letter to the UK authorities saying he suffers from psychological problems including depression, dental issues and a serious shoulder ailment. They want him transferred to a hospital. Clearly they have a point. However, while I accept that Assange is not in good health and deserves better treatment lets not applaud what was a dangerous practice and a dubious precedent publicly exposing unverified data that could potentially...

LAURIE PATTON. OK Boomer know thine enemy

In the 20th Century each successive generation fared better than their parents, both socially and financially. The likelihood is that trend will continue this century if we all work together finding solutions to the very serious problems facing the environment and we leverage the benefits accruing from the emerging digitally-enabled global economy. There has always been a generation gap and probably always will be but when it comes to existential matters solidarity forever I say!

LAURIE PATTON. Catch 22.0 we wouldnt need inquiries if public administration wasnt so broken

On ABC Insiders host Fran Kelly asked health minister Greg Hunt why the Government didnt have an immediate response ready on the aged care royal commission report just released. It wasnt a surprise to anyone, was it, Ms Kelly observed with obvious frustration.

LAURIE PATTON. More broadband porkies. Buying an NBN pig in a poke

To quote veteran IT journalist Sam Varghese,NBN Cos latest attempt to put lipstick on a pig the animal in this case being the network it is building and the make-up in question being speed goes one step further than the alternative facts which its former chief executive, Bill Morrow, used to dish out. The spin doctors at NBN Co are understandably annoyed at media reports reminding people that Australia has dropped from 30th to around 60th in global broadband speed rankings. So they came up with a novel solution. They made up their own numbers. The trouble is...

LAURIE PATTON. Telstra should stop whinging and help fix our dud NBN

Earlier in the week Telstra chair, John Mullen, conceded that the company must accept some of the blame for our flawed National Broadband Network due to its recalcitrance back in 2007/2008 when it submitted a bid that didnt meet the requirements of the government tender to build a nationwide network. As Mr Mullen also observed, whether we like it or not, the NBN is here to stay. Having admitted that it failed to submit a genuine bid back then the least Telstra should do now is help fix the NBN.

LAURIE PATTON. Miscommunication. Paul Fletcher spins his top like turvey

Communications minister Paul Fletcher spoke at an industry conference and outdid his Coalition predecessors in an extraordinary attempt to defend the beleaguered National Broadband Network. These are just some of the comments he made to an incredulous audience of IT professionals who know so much more than he does.

LAURIE PATTON. Time to stop digging our way out of trouble. A lesson from the past?

For the foreseeable future Australia will rely on mining for economic growth and to maintain our current standard of living. Yet unresolved debates over a number of proposed coal mines have exposed a rift in political circles that may well determine the outcome of the next federal election, just as the issue had a major impact on this years poll. While the risk is arguably greater on Labors side the turning tide of public opinion spurred by concerns about Global Warming suggests both the major parties would be well-advised to start thinking about their future responses to the demands of...

LAURIE PATTON. How Malcolm Turnbull missed his chance to fix the NBN

Internet access is now the most complained about telco service in Australia according to the Telecommunications Ombudsmans latest report. While complaints about mobile phones have been on the decline recently, the state of our trouble-plagued NBN continues to see consumers heading to the authorities in the faint hope their broadband problems can be fixed. Alas, the future remains bleak for millions of NBN Co customers until the Government abandons a flawed set of technologies simply incapable of delivering 21st Century speeds.

LAURIE PATTON. Barbarians at the gate dont let them destroy Murray Valley national park

The New South Wales deputy premier wants to allow logging in a national park in the statesRiverina.John Barilarosays he intends removing statutory protection of the 42,000 hectareMurray Valley National Park either by de-gazetting the entire area or reducing its size.

LAURIE PATTON. The Assange dilemma. What is journalism in the online age?

Julian Assangereleased bulkmaterial, unfiltered and uncorroborated, via the Internet. If he had leaked it directly to the media outlets that subsequently, but selectively, published reports based on hisWikiLeaks dumps he probably would not be in gaol facingextraditionto the United States. His identity as a source would have been protected. Ironically, any American journalists who used his material would quite possibly now be in prison for failing to reveal their source.

LAURIE PATTON. Its the vision, stupid! Why we need #BetterBroadband

While neither side of politics is saying much about our increasingly-malignedNational Broadband Network during the election period, the fact is Australia is falling behind in the race to leverage the benefits economic and social of an emerging digitally-enabled future. Irrespective of the outcome of the election we need #BetterBroadband and we need a less politicised future for NBN Co.

LAURIE PATTON.Labor spells out its NBN rescue plan

Labors communications spokesperson, Michelle Rowland, has outlined a very sensible approach to fixing the dud NBN. In fact, should the Coalition retain office it would be well advised to adopt Labors plan.

LAURIE PATTON. Fair trade or exploitation the warehousing of Internet domain names.

auDA the company managing our Internet domain name registration system is engaged in a reform program. This follows areviewby the communications department which called for major governance changes. auDA has released adiscussion paperand has called for public submissions on a range of proposed policy and operational changes. This is being accompanied by a consultation process that sees auDA presenting to MPs and senators at Parliament House this week.

LAURIE PATTON. The NBNs year of reckoning

2019 is shaping up as the year well be forced to face the fact we are building a National Broadband Network that simply isnt good enough. Its also the year our major telcos will start rolling out their capital-intensive 5G mobile networks, having spent millions of dollars buying up spectrum from the federal government. However, as a nation keen to be a leader in the 21st Centurys digitally-enabled world wed arguably be better off spending money fixing the dud NBN before investing in mobile networks few people in the know reckon will add much to the consumer experience.

LAURIE PATTON. Its poor planning, not the size of the population, thats the problem

As Christopher Pyne has pointed out, We don't need to put a handbrake on population growth, we need to manage our population growth sensibly in a country which quite frankly can take a lot more than 25 million people. Pyne comes from Adelaide, of course, where the state government says it would like to see a lot more people living?

LAURIE PATTON. Time to ditch our dud NBN beaten by the All Blacks of Broadband

The contrast could not be any starker. As warnings emerged that Australias telcos are seeing their profits squeezed by the end of NBN Cos short-lived wholesale price discount (with thelikelihood that retail prices will rise), across the ditch came word that New Zealanders are about so see their broadband speeds greatly increase while the price of connecting to the Internet comes down. How could this be?

LAURIE PATTON. ACCC begins search for light at the end of the NBN technology tunnel

The boss of the ACCC, Rod Sims, has told The Australianits recent dealings with the retail telcos has highlighted a weakness with the fibre-to-the-node (FTTN) access technology. For numerous broadband experts, not to mention millions of hapless NBN customers, this might be seen as a classic no shit Sherlock moment. However, it is probably the most significant recent development in the long running saga that began with Labors 21st Century fibre-based national broadband network, only to end in tears for so many when former prime minister Tony Abbott ordered his heavily-wedged communications minister, Malcolm Turnbull, to destroy the NBN.

LAURIE PATTON. Planning for smart cities Code of Practice released

Enhanced telecommunications connectivity, data insights, digital planning practices and innovation districts will underpin the creation of so-called smart cities. Thats the theme of a Code of Practice released this week as part ofSmart Cities Week Australia. Developed by leading smart cities advocacy group theSmart Cities Counciland theGreen Building Council of Australiathe voluntary code is designed to shorten the transformation cycle and is aimed at both government and industry players.

LAURIE PATTON. The NBN sinks deeper into a technological mire.

Oh dear! This week newNBN CobossSteven RuetoldSenate Estimatesthey are still projecting thatFTTN(the trouble-plagued technology using Telstras ageing copper wires) will be used until 2040. Experts, includingInternet AustraliachairDr Paul Brooks, sayFTTN will have to be replaced within 5-10 years of completion, preferably before then.

LAURIE PATTON. Common sense prevails in battle over Internet domain names service.

Despite a nasty and at times irrational campaign by a small dissident group, the future of Australias Internet domain names system was secured last week. A meeting of members overwhelmingly approved a new constitution and consequential governance changes to auDA the company that oversees management of our domain names service.

LAURIE PATTON. Its time to clean up the Internet

This week a new CEO joined the Internet Society the global not-for-profit overseeing the development of the Internet since1992. In his first official statement Andrew Sullivan noted that its a challenging time for the Internet. I agree. Which is why this article, originally posted back in June, still resonates.

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