In the wake of the Robodebt royal commission's findings, a former department boss warns some public servants have forgotten their chief responsibility to offer frank and fearless advice.
Among the report's recommendations were for a review into the structure of government departments, training on public service principles, standards for documenting important decisions, and reforms to the Public Service Act to clarify powers for agency heads to be investigated, and former heads disciplined.
Professor Halton said FOI laws did have a "chilling effect" on people's willingness to be frank, but agreed that the possibility advice may be made public was no excuse not to put it in writing."A lot of really important advice is committed to writing, but I think we heard evidence in the commission that some people were reticent to deliver that really difficult advice in the first instance in writing, they wanted to provide it verbally.
"Any self-respecting politician having the sort of detailed forensic examination and assessment made by this royal commission would be embarrassed, humiliated," Mr Shorten said. Mr Morrison has rejected the findings made against him in the royal commission, saying they were unsubstantiated and contradictory to the evidence given to the inquiry.
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