18 October, 2000
Ms Annastacia Palaszczuk
Senior Policy Advisor,
Office of Minister for Mines and Energy
Thank you for your letter of 12 October on behalf of your Minister, in
relation to the copy of my letter to Dr Glynn Davis regarding AWU
/ ALP Practices for Filling Positions. Your letter offered an assurance
that Dr Davis will give my correspondence full consideration.
Despite your confidence, I am not holding my breath.
I suspect that there is far too much at stake for too many people for my
request to gain a simple and honest response at this time. For example dealing
with that issue would:
- acknowledge a serious defect at the core of the (alleged) reform of the
Public Service under the Goss Government, and also undermine the credibility
of those (now influential) persons whose career advancement has depended on
running that process;
- highlight the need to take economic competitiveness seriously, and thus
the need for a much higher level of knowledge and skills in government and
business (so as to develop the mainstream mechanisms of our economy
themselves - rather than just keeping our political system amused with
low-productivity industrial recruitment, dubious 'economic infrastructure'
and commercially-irrelevant government 'assistance' to firms);
- encounter resistance from those who have been able exploit the weakness of
Queensland's political system to secure well-rewarded positions to which
they should not be entitled (eg as is being alleged before the Shepherdson
inquiry in relation to the role of the AWU within the ALP, and as appeared
to be practised against the professional Public Service by AWU-dominated
ministerial offices under the Goss Government); and
- imply the need for renewal of Queensland's Public Service on the basis of
real-world technical and professional competence, rather than on political
aptitude.
Because of this I suspect that I will have to wait patiently for another two
years or so before resolution of the issues raised by my dispute with the
Premier's Department will have become unavoidable.
None the less, I appreciate your thought.
[Signed John Craig]