The powers of the Prime Minister to appoint senior bureaucrats should be set out in law and budgets for public service departments better aligned with government policies, a major review has recommended.
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Former Telstra boss David Thodey has unveiled the initial recommendations from a year-long review of the 150,000 person-strong Australian public service, calling for moves to common pay across the 18 departments of state and more than 100 agencies, as well as reforms to management, cross-agency coordination and technology.
Tuesday's report says the Prime Minister’s legislated role in hiring and firing department secretaries should be retained, but a codified process should be created in law to inform recommendations to the Governor-General, including published job criteria.
It says transparency around performance expectations and management of senior bureaucrats is needed, with consideration about terminations and an expert committee still ongoing.
Prime Ministers can remove department bosses as they choose, leading to the so-called “night of the long knives” sackings when Howard government came to office in 1996.
After his 2013 election win, Tony Abbott was criticised for removing secretaries viewed as too close to the former Labor government.
The role of Australia's most senior public servant — the secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet — as the "head of service" should be made clear in legislation and the Australian Public Service Commission should be reformed to improve standards, the review said.
The appointment of the commissioner's position, currently held by Malcolm Turnbull's former chief-of-staff Peter Woolcott, should be subject to consultation of Parliament.
Controversial former commissioner John Lloyd quit the APSC after refusing to answer questions about a possible investigation into his communications with a right-wing think tank in 2018.
Mr Turnbull announced the surprise public service review in May 2018, saying much of the current structure dated back to the Coombs royal commission in the 1970s.
Tuesday's report called for "a stable spine" of common digital platforms and policy frameworks to operate across the APS to enable core services, including human resources, finance, ICT and data sharing.
It said a digitally enabled public service, with sophisticated systems and deep capabilities in data analytics, AI and automation would help maintain effectiveness and public trust.
A move towards common pay and conditions across departments is proposed, potentially ending decades of inconsistent rates and competition among federal employees.
The report calls for "measures to provide greater access for ministers to subject matter and public administration expertise, and to deepen APS understanding of ministers’ needs and expectations."
That could include new positions for senior public servants in ministerial offices and a higher proportion of ministerial policy staff with public sector experience.
About 70 per cent of federal public servants work on implementation or service delivery, with 20 per cent developing policies.
The remaining 10 per cent is split between specialist support and regulation enforcement.
Some 57,100 public servants work in Canberra, 37.9 per cent of the total workforce, with the rest around Australia and overseas including more than 25,000 in both Sydney and Melbourne.
Mr Thodey said the report presented the panel's current views and called for feedback before a final report to government in mid-2019, likely after the federal election.
"We believe it is only through testing our thinking, openly and iteratively, that we will come to the best answers – robust, implementable recommendations that achieve the desired outcomes for the APS," he said.
Public Service Minister Mathias Cormann called for broad input and parliamentary scutiny.
"This review will help us explore opportunities to further improve the efficiency, effectiveness and responsiveness of our public service by embracing technological innovation to better respond to increasing community expectations," he said.
