26 July 2006

Secretary,
Ryan Federal Electorate Council,
Australian Labor Party

Australia's future under Labor

In response to your circular requesting two suggestions about things that could be changed in the Australian community by a future government, I would like to suggest for your Council's consideration that the most productive steps might involve:

• fundamental reform of machinery of government to (a) restore the support which elected representatives require from an apolitical professional Public Service and (b) recognise that governing is not like running a big business. The background to this suggestion is encapsulated in Decay of Australian Public Administration: A Diagnosis. This suggests that such structural reforms are required in order to inhibit the development of symptoms like those your circular suggested to afflict the present federal government (ie tired, complacent, selfish, dubious IR reforms) - because exactly the same problem of remoteness and arrogance have afflicted Labor Governments when they created centralised / politicised / quasi-commercial administrative machinery.
• giving specific attention to the requirements of governing effectively in the current environment, perhaps by seeking expert responses to issues such as those outlined in Australia's Governance Crisis.

Until a philosophy of government which suits prevailing conditions is developed and institutional arrangements are put in place to support it, it makes little difference what electorates want, what governments try to deliver or who controls government.

Regards

John Craig
Centre for Policy and Development Systems