The Australian Public Service: What of the Sovereign’s own Capability?
With the geopolitical and economic certainties of the late 20th century unravelling, Australia must reconsider what constitutes genuine sovereign capability. Over the past three decades, the vast amount of skills and resources of the Australian Public Service (APS) have been chipped away at. Reforms associated with New Public Management have sought to improve public administration by replicating the incentives and structures of corporate management. Yet have these changes improved the APS or have they only weakened APS independence, narrowed policy horizons and reduced transparency?
Brendan Lyon, David Johnstone, and Matthew Darling
Farrer Byelection Gives One Nation New Springboard
With regional Australia One Nation's natural hunting ground, the Farrer byelection was ripe to be the first federal test of whether the party was actually entrenching itself as a serious challenger on the right of politics. The result was seismic, and saw the Liberal party’s vote collapse from 43% to 12% in less than a year, potentially reshaping Australian politics forever. So what happened in Farrer and what will it mean going forward?
Michelle Grattan and John Hawkins
Unseen, not Absent: Girls & Young Women in the Justice System
Young women in Australia’s youth justice system remain largely invisible — out of sight and, too often, out of mind. Many have lived through family violence, sexual assault, exploitation, neglect, and abuse – within families and in their personal relationships. Yet rather than receiving care or support as victim/survivors, young women are punished as offenders. Systems misinterpret trauma as criminality, asking ‘What is wrong with her?’ and failing to ask ‘What happened to her?’
Simone Deegan and Belinda Lorek
Dressed Up With Nowhere To Go – Data, AI, and Better Policymaking
Data is increasingly treated as a foundational resource - essential for innovation and transformation across industries and central to modern governance. While the availability of data has grown, there still remains critical skill requirements in preparing and managing data before AI or policymakers and public institutions can make meaningful use of it. These tools and skills are what will be critical in closing the gap between data’s potential and policy’s reality. There is opportunity here to lead the way.
Renata Borovica-Gajic and Shaanan Cohney
