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Last updated: 4 July 2003
The Australian experience of public sector reform
Useful references
Australian public administration in perspective
Chapter 1 - The Constitutional and Government framework
- The structure of government
» Origins / Federal Parliament / The executive / The judiciary / The states / Australian territories / Local government / The wider public sector / Public sector staffing - Government revenue and expenditure
» Raising of revenue / Patterns of expenditure - Inter-governmental relations
Chapter 2 - Legislating for the public service
- The federal Public Service Act
» The 1902 foundations / The 1922 Act / The Public Service Act 1999 / Administering the Act / The APS Values and accountability / Evolutionary change - The Workplace Relations Act
- Financial management legislation
- Other relevant legislation
- Similarity and change
Chapter 3-Public service reviews
- Royal Commission Inquiry
- Review of Commonwealth Functions
- Review of Commonwealth Administration
- Public Service Reform Act 1984
- Public Service Act Review Group
- A new reform agenda
- State and territory public sector reviews
Chapter 4-Staffing the public service
- Size and shape of the APS
- Devolution and the APS Values
- Staffing the Service through merit
- Categories of employee
- Workplace diversity
- Workforce planning
- Performance management
» A strategic focus / Managing underperformance - Remuneration, rewards and performance pay
- Termination of employment
» Redundancy and retrenchment - Review of action
- Whistleblowing
- Promoting better management
- Agency heads
» Tenure in an apolitical Service / Agency head selection / Performance assessment of agency heads / Collegiate forums - Senior Executive Service
» SES selection / SES redundancies / Leadership capability - Leadership development
» Commonwealth SES / State SES / Senior managers-Executive Level / Development of middle managers and their feeder groups / The Australia and New Zealand School of Government / Building capability
Chapter 6-Financial reforms and accountability
- Legislating for financial management
» Charter of Budget Honesty Act 1998 / Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 / Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 / Auditor-General Act 1997 - Budgetary reforms
» Reforms of the 1980s and 1990s / Outcomes/outputs framework - Financial management reforms
» Accrual accounting / Financial estimates and reporting systems / Performance reporting and benchmarking / Oversight of Government Business Enterprises / Improving tendering and procurement procedures - Strengthening accountability
- The role of the Auditor-General
» Financial statement auditing / Performance auditing - Risk management
» Risk management of information technology / Fraud control / Internal auditing - Parliamentary scrutiny
» Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit / Senate Committees
- Improving strategic planning and use of business plans
- Commercialisation and choice
- Structures for delivery of government services
- Competition and contestability
- Corporatisation
- Outsourcing and contracting out
- Privatisation
- Private financing
- Purchaser/provider arrangements
- The regulators as protectors of public interest
- Regulatory controls
» Review of legislation / Regulation impact statements / Cost recovery - Increasing productivity
- Customer service
» Improving service delivery / Measuring customer satisfaction / Service charters / A quality management approach / Customer service training / Customer complaints and administrative redress / Communication - Public involvement in policy development
» Expectations of public involvement / Widening the range of policy advisors - Providing a more open and consultative approach
» Local consultation / Stakeholder consultation / Gathering views through public inquiries / A partnership approach to consultation
- The changing structure of government
- The changing environment of policy making
» Involving citizens / The impact of international change / Workforce capability - Performance and organisational capability
- Devolution and accountability
- Whole-of-government
- A unified Public Service defined by Values
- Conclusion
