Rebuilding public service from politicisation and externalisation
Rebuilding public service from politicisation and externalisation
Michael Lester, Andrew Podger

Rebuilding public service from politicisation and externalisation

Restoring trust and integrity in the Australian Public Service requires tackling the corrosive effects of past politicisation (secretary contracts) and externalisation (professional consultants) that have undermined capacity and independence, as highlighted by the Royal Commission on Robodebt fiasco, and parliamentary committee revelations around the extensive engagement of major consulting firms.

Former public service commissioner Andrew Podger AO, former head of many federal departments and currently Professor of Public policy, Australian National University, discusses these dynamics and the path to reform, long required and well understood but only hesitatingly addressed by governments.

 

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Restoring integrity to the Australian Public Service

The purpose of this paper is to help promote discussion about the ways in which the efficiency, effectiveness and capability of the Australian Public Service (APS) and its integrity can be improved, and the standing of the APS as a key institution in Australias democratic system can be restored.

The views expressed in this article may or may not reflect those of Pearls and Irritations.

Michael Lester

Michael Lester is a public policy economist with a career in Commonwealth and State agencies, World Bank and OECD. His interests include innovation, environment, and governance. He presents programs on community radio.

Andrew Podger

Andrew Podger is honorary Professor of Public Policy at The Australian National University, and former Australian Public Service Commissioner and Secretary of the Departments of Health and Aged Care, Housing and Regional Development, and Administrative Services. He was national president of the Institute of Public Administration Australia from 2004 to 2010, and a member of the foundation board of the Australian and New Zealand School of Government. He was made an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2004, and has written extensively on social policy including health financing, retirement incomes and tax and social security, and on public administration.