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The Sunshine State just got a little sunnier, with the Queensland government pledging to adopt the 14 recommendations of the Coaldrake report into the state's public service. Aptly titled Let the sunshine in, the report outlined a public service culture of secrecy, bullying and toeing the government line. One of its most revolutionary recommendations was that cabinet papers be released after 30 days instead of 30 years. That will illuminate material traditionally kept in the dark for three decades. As they say, the best disinfectant is sunlight.
We know he's busy pressing the flesh of NATO leaders and restoring Australia's reputation on the world stage but we also hope word of this move reaches Anthony Albanese in Europe. It was only last year when, in opposition, he was complaining bitterly about the Morrison government's refusal to grant his Freedom of Information requests regarding matters before national cabinet - the regular gathering of the PM and state and territory leaders.
"Mr Morrison's obsession with secrecy has undermined the law that protects all Australians' right to know and, if left unchecked, threatens other fundamental rights," he said at the time. But asked in June if he had proposed national cabinet secrecy be ended, the new PM batted aside the question with a one-word answer, "No." We don't know the reason for the change of heart because Albanese refused to answer the second part of the question: "If not, why not?"
We accept there are areas of cabinet deliberations over which a veil of secrecy is sometimes necessary. National security and defence top that list. However, there are many other areas of cabinet's work which should be transparent. Queensland has decided to go down that path of openness. It's not the first, though. New Zealand has been doing it for years. "Proactively releasing information promotes good government, openness and transparency, and fosters public trust and confidence in agencies," the Ministry of Social Development website says.
In NSW, people are baying for transparency as revelations come to light each day about the appointment of former deputy premier John Barilaro to a lucrative trade commissioner role in New York (established by Barilaro himself before he quit the NSW parliament). The appointment was made out of public view and is so damaging at least one NSW minister called for Barilaro to step down, which he did late yesterday. The growing scandal has the potential to ruin the Perrottet government's chances at the next election. It reeks of jobs for the boys and echoes strongly the poor governance which sent NSW Labor into the political wilderness in 2011.
Integrity was a defining issue in the federal election campaign. A core Labor promise was to deliver a national anti-corruption commission this year. The teal wave was propelled by it. Integrity comes with transparency and the scrutiny it affords. In 1860, philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote: "As gas-light is found to be the best nocturnal police, so the universe protects itself by pitiless publicity." Having access in July 2022 to cabinet deliberations made in June, rather than waiting until June 2052, discourages dodgy behaviour. And it goes some way towards restoring faith in government.
Hopefully, the PM will reconsider his abrupt about-face on cabinet secrecy and restore a little voters' faith in himself.
HAVE YOUR SAY: Is there too much secrecy in government? What sort of cabinet papers should be kept secret - what should released quickly? How long should such papers be protected? Does transparency make for better government? Email us: echidna@theechidna.com.au
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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
- The government has ordered an independent review into Australia's existing procurement contracts for COVID-19 vaccines and treatments as new subvariants emerge. The probe comes as COVID-19 vaccines for small children aged between six months and five years, which have been approved in the United States, are progressing towards approval in Australia
- Better and targeted mental health support mechanisms have been suggested to the royal commission into Defence and veteran suicide to address issues for serving Indigenous peoples. Yesterday, a First Nations panel detailed the challenges of service life faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander personnel.
- Woodside will be required to achieve net-zero emissions at its ageing Karratha gas plant in Western Australia by 2050 as a condition of a long-term project extension. WA's Environmental Protection Authority said it had recommended the North West Shelf extension project for approval.
THEY SAID IT: "No matter what time it is, wake me, even if it's in the middle of a Cabinet meeting." - Ronald Reagan
YOU SAID IT: "I would agree with your summation of defence spending. I am 65, and as far back as I can remember this has always been a can of worms. But, back in Gough's time, we didn't have the current China issues. So, we have always underspent, and now it is really coming home to roost. How about a plan? And how about making and sticking to a contract? And how does it work that we can afford to gift patrol boats to Solomon Islands when we have a housing crisis here and so many homeless and living under the minimum wage?" - Mark
"You've absolutely nailed it today! History has shown us repeatedly that 'the government (and it matters not which persuasion) is the problem and not the solution!' Their expertise is blaming each other for repeated failures and not much else." - Darrell
"What would it take for one world leader to publicly ask China to state its territorial intentions? We know Taiwan and Hong Kong are a given. If they do not have an intention other than those immediate territories then their pursuit of world domination in commerce is no different than that of the USA or Britain over the last 250 years. If there is no physical threat to us in Australia, then a treaty or pact with the Chinese is a must." - Dave
"The reason why we haven't a defence system, high-speed rail or a decent road system is because we have three tiers of government costing billions. The only country on the planet that spends the bulk of its income on government." - Wayne
"Nuclear subs could be obsolete by the time they arrive. What a waste of money, besides, some of us live in nuclear-free cities. Imagine having a Minister For Peace. Radical." - Judy
"There's no point increasing the defence budget - it just upsets neighbours like Indonesia and starts escalation spirals, at which game China will always beat us hands down. Best to keep spending at a level typical for a middle power (around 1.5 per cent of GDP) and focus genuinely on defence, rather than becoming a cog in the American war machine." - Felix
"I do not understand the need to purchase an entire new fleet. A family, generally, does not upgrade their cars at the same time. Why not commit to a new sub, helicopter, plane, etc, every few years, ensuring you keep up with changing technology." - Samantha
"Yes, Defence procurement is a complicated business and the over-estimation of new technology often results in blunders but it doesn't help that the people with the greatest say in the matter have no knowledge of either defence issue being solved or the procurement process. Witness Tony Abbott promising the Japanese Prime Minister that we would buy Japanese submarines or John Howard agreeing to join the Joint Strike Fighter program when the RAAF was only halfway through a six-year study into Australia's air defence needs." - David