Dan Holmes

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ICAC sees School Infrastructure NSW contractors take the stand

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

NSW ICAC’s public hearings into alleged nepotism at School Infrastructure NSW (SINSW) have been running for almost a month, revealing a tangled network of players and payments. ICAC is investigating whether former chief executive Anthony Manning and other SINSW staff improperly gave jobs and contracts to mates at above-market rates and didn’t declare. This week saw alleged beneficiaries Stuart Suthern-Brunt, Michael Palassis, and Anthony Courtman give evidence in the public hearing.
UK bets the budget on replacing civil servants with AI

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

The United Kingdom’s junior civil servants spend two-thirds of their time on things that can be done by AI, according to the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT). DSIT policy documents obtained by Politico estimate 62% of tasks performed by the most junior public servants are “routine”, and therefore automatable. It calculates that executive officers, senior executive officers, and higher executive officers spend 48%, 43%, and 23% of their time on routine tasks, respectively.
Robodebt dampening public servants' AI enthusiasm

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

Public servants are weighing the costs of using AI to speed through their work, according to a report by UNSW Canberra’s Public Service Research Group. Released yesterday, the report examines the current use of generative AI (genAI) in policy development. The authors interviewed senior public servants across 22 state, territory, and federal government agencies to gather perspectives across the public sector.
Queensland's Olympic planning changes come under fire

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

Stakeholders have expressed their horror at proposed changes to Queensland’s planning laws that would strip local councils of the right to prevent Olympic-related developments. David Crisafulli “fired the starting gun” on a 100-day review of the previous government’s Olympic infrastructure plan in November as one of his first acts as premier.
Commissioner calls for national human rights framework

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

Australia’s human rights record is “disturbing” to the international community, according to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Katie Kiss. Delivering the 2025 Mabo Oration, Kiss said the approach being adopted by Australian states and territories is not new, but part of a much longer pattern. She said Australia has a history of signing on to international agreements, then ignoring them when it’s politically inconvenient.
Queensland MoGs customer service roles

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

The Queensland government will centralise customer service functions into a single department. The Department of Transport and Main Roads will transfer its customer service functions to the Department of Customer Services, Open Data, and Small and Family Business on July 1. The machinery of government change (MoG) will affect about 1,500 employees, including those in customer service, call centre, and digital identity roles.
NSW tourism and information offices secure female leads

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

The NSW Information and Privacy Commission (IPC) and Destination NSW are continuing a legacy of female leadership, with two new appointments. Rosalind Croucher has been appointed IPC information commissioner, and Karen Jones has been appointed CEO of Destination NSW. The information commissioner’s role has proven hard to fill, with three short-term appointments since last year.
New Zealand scrambles to plug leaky public service

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

New Zealand public service commissioner Brian Roche is cracking down on leaks, according to an email leaked to Radio New Zealand. The email was sent just hours after a court injunction prevented the public broadcaster from publishing leaked budget documents. It was the latest in a long line of leaks. Roche confirmed he is looking to tighten information security, reminding public servants that leaking is a breach of the code of conduct.
Western Australia ombud appointed

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

Bevan Warner has been appointed Western Australian ombud. Warner steps into the role, formally titled Western Australian parliamentary commissioner for administrative investigations, after 35 years in the public sector. Warner began his career in the Western Australian public sector, eventually becoming the general manager of Legal Aid WA. In 2008, he relocated to Melbourne to serve as the managing director of Victoria Legal Aid for 10 years.
A guide to ICAC's investigation into School Infrastructure NSW

3 weeks ago | themandarin.com.au | Dan Holmes |Daniel Holmes

NSW ICAC’s public hearings into alleged nepotism at School Infrastructure NSW (SINSW) have already been running for almost a month, revealing a tangled network of players and payments. This week will see the man at the centre of the investigation, former SINSW chief executive Anthony Manning, appear before ICAC, along with other star witnesses.