Dan Holmes

Movers & Shakers: All aboard government boards Board appointments aplenty, with fresh faces for ASC, Digital ID and rights, QLeave, Brisbane 2032, Vic Legal Aid, and WA's NDIS advisory.

Who's who in the zoo this week

#ausnews #auspol

'Is this Labor's robodebt?': Welfare advocates slam escalating failures At least 15 welfare and human rights organisations have renewed calls for the government to end its Targeted Compliance Framework.

Many thanks to @antipovertycentre.org for the interview.

#auspol #ausnews

NT corrections workers not to speak to UN human rights officials Canberra watchers are eyeing the NT after it blocked a UN detention inspection, adding fresh tension to Australia’s stalled OPCAT work.

👀

#auspol #ausnews

Ombud strikes another blow in unlawful welfare cancellation saga DEWR, Services Australia, and individual providers all get a kick in Iain Anderson's second report on the Targeted Compliance Framework.

Another booting for DEWR and Services Australia.

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Million-dollar mandarins: 34 government employees with seven-figure salaries We break down the pay packets of all Australian Commonwealth officials who earned more than $1 million in 2024-2025.

Cha-ching

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@jeremypoxon.bsky.social I'll say hi to Natalie James for you

The APS Secretaries' Salaries List 2025 See who topped this year’s list of federal public service secretaries’ salaries and how the million-dollar club has grown.

#ausnews #auspol

APS minister defends response to nepotism review Katy Gallagher faced a barrage of questions in Senate estimates about the government response to the scathing Briggs review.

This is most of what I was able to gather from the APS minister yesterday on the "jobs for mates" review.

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Nepotism and patronage in public sector board appointments This is an edited version of Lynelle Briggs’ executive summary to her Report of the Review into Public Sector Board Appointments Processes.

everyone gets a smack today

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NACC whacked at Senate estimates Senate estimates turned tense as the NACC chief pushed back on claims about past advice work and defended the commission’s integrity under sharp questioning.

Season 3 of Senate v the NACC has dropped.

#auspol #ausnews

🤓 GRATTAN’S 2025 WONKS’ LIST 🤓

In addition to our Prime Minister’s Summer Reading List, our Wonks’ List highlights some of the year’s best technical policy reads.

Here are our picks for 2025. buff.ly/YcFqGwm #auspol #ausecon

Back on the tools and covering senate estimates this week. tips and Q's welcome.

#ausnews #estimates #auspol

Opinion | Black Friday is dead. Long live capitalism. Chaotic scenes of yesteryear were an aberration from how a market economy works, not its apotheosis.

Democracy dies in SAVINGS

share.google/tCI7nT7eyWBi...

Banger.

Common Sense 325 – Who’s the Boss? – Dan Carlin share.google/obdQIzuZ6uvG...

All about faces in the Senate today

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ICAC NSW expands investigation in tense final week of hearings ICAC will examine if Transport for NSW workers 'impaired public confidence in public administration' as part of Operation Wyvern.

Public hearings are over for now, but ICAC has expanded its investigation to whether those involved have undermined confidence in public administration at Transport for NSW.

#ICAC #ausnews #auspol

Movers & Shakers: Climate Change Authority announces CEO DFAT ambassador for cyber affairs, ARC chief operating officer, ART judicial presidents, WA EPA deputy chair and more.

This week's biggest public sector appointments

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Canadian public servants chuck sickies to avoid return to office Canada's public servants have taken 14% more sick days since being forced back to the office three days a week.

Canadians finding ways of avoiding confrontation, even when in open rebellion against the government.

Current APS-wide pay scales - a Freedom of Information request to Australian Public Service Commission I am requesting a document that shows the most current up-to-date pay scales for all APS agencies and/or prescribed authorities. For context, the APSC published agency pay scales as of 31 August 2023...

www.righttoknow.org.au/request/curr...

The highest- and lowest-paid jobs in the APS APSC has published the top and bottom salaries for each agency by level. Does your pay packet pass the pub test?

My thanks to the anonymous FOI applicant that got the APSC to produce this data.

Link to their communications with the commission in the comments.

#ausnews #auspol

Commonwealth public servant charged with defrauding Defence The AFP, NACC, and Department of Defence's investigations have found evidence of a $71 million procurement fraud.

I present, for your consideration, evidence of NACC doing something.

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ICAC NSW: Decoding 'penis' and missed warnings Transport for NSW corruption investigators and the accused's line manager gave evidence to ICAC NSW about red flags as early as 2023.

Ow, my brain

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Movers & Shakers: Director-general departs Australian Submarine Agency Former premier headed for London, NDIA board picks CEO, War Memorial council appointments, Tasmania names integrity commissioner.

The biggest government appointments this week.

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Head to lead National Disability Insurance Agency NDIA's new CEO has worked in some of the public service's toughest jobs, including as the agency's quality and safety commissioner.

One of the toughest jobs in the APS goes to Barilaro's inquisitor in chief.

#ausnews #auspol

Frank and Fearless: What's changed for public servants this year? Public servants told us in this year's Frank and Fearless survey that things were getting better in some ways, and worse in others.

More from this year's Frank and fearless survey

Committee business to pull APS back to parliament From tax breaks to PwC bans, the Senate is flexing its inquiry muscle; public servants should expect a busy return to parliament.

There might only be one sitting week left, but there's plenty of Parliamentary business to go on with this year.

#ausnews #auspol

ICAC NSW: Former transport employee’s friend claims ignorance The anti-corruption commission has heard evidence that former Transport for NSW worker Ibrahim Helmy liked people watching him count bundles of contractors' cash.

I'm well past the point where anything in this case would surprise me.

#ausnews #auspol

How the ACT's public sector wage bill compares to the rest of the country Brittney Levinson, Fri, 07 Nov 2025 05:30

More than 155,000 Canberrans now work for government.

Frank and Fearless: Public servants really feeling Under Pressure Public servants' taste in music and sense of fun is as diverse as their skillsets and workplace experience.

Another one from The Mandarin's Frank and Fearless survey

Can we afford to power AI? - ABC listen In the last decade, the number of data centres worldwide has doubled. As the tech bros spend big to render AI an irreplaceable part of our everyday lives, the energy and water required is truly eye-wa...

Kudos to @mattbevan.bsky.social for making a good fist of examining the caveats to power/water usage claims associated with AI use.

Is this the new carbon footprint?