Slashing the capabilities of government departments means that in the real world, dodgy characters escape scrutiny and genuine needs go unanswered.
Ministerial accountability used to be a reasonably straightforward thing: if something went wrong in your portfolio, it was your responsibility and you resigned.
John Howard changed his ministerial code of conduct and took to claiming ministers who had erred – Peter Reith and Helen Coonan found themselves in hot spots – had not committed a “hanging offence” after, early in his time of office, taking a tough line on any transgressions and as a result losing a slew of ministers and senior advisers.The federal opposition has been calling for the head of Immigration Minister Andrew Giles this week.
The head of the Home Affairs Department, Stephanie Foster, conceded in Senate estimates this week that this had not happened. It transpired that the recently superseded Administrative Appeals Tribunal had been overturning decisions by Giles’ department to cancel visas on the back of Direction 99.In parliament, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton asked Giles about the awful case of a New Zealand man who had raped his 14-year-old stepdaughter being allowed to stay in Australia.
This week, a capability assessment of Home Affairs by the Australian Public Service Commission noted that a high turnover of senior executives meant it risked losing key skills and capabilities.Trouble at Home Affairs “Other than a limited capacity that exists within the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority, there is currently no compliance or investigative capability within the department’s immigration group.
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