The Westminster Tradition

Dec 02 2024 40 ep. 38 mins 71
The Westminster Tradition Podcast artwork

Unpacking lessons for the public service, starting with the Robodebt Royal Commission. 
In 2019, after three years, Robodebt was found to be unlawful. The Royal Commission process found it was also immoral and wildly inaccurate. Ultimately the Australian Government was forced to pay $1.8bn back to more than 470,000 Australians. In this podcast we dive deep into public policy failures like Robodebt and the British Post Office scandal - how they start, why they're hard to stop, and the public service lessons we shouldn't forget.

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What the NACC is going on? Updates on Robodebt and the National Anti-Corruption Commission

Dec 02 2024 32 mins  
Keeping track of the National Anti-Corruption Commission and Robodebt is tricky - first there's no investigation, then there's some kind of review, then there's a search for an eminent person....In this episode, we talk about where things are at, managing conflicts of interest, and whether corruption always involves brown paper bags.For Rick Morton's reporting on this:Eight minutes

Mr Bates v Post Office part 8 - ‘The One Where The Report is a Slide Deck’

Nov 18 2024 41 mins  
Post Office’s internal inquiries never got to the bottom of the situation. Here we unpack how to choose an investigator, getting the information to the person, and what do with a report.Opening grab from Sir Anthony Hooper, independent chair of Horizon mediation scheme.Subsequent grab from Mr Beer KC and Paula Vennels, former Post Office Limited Chief Executive. Subsequent grab M

Mr Bates v Post Office part 7 - ‘The One Where The Inquiries Go Nowhere’

Nov 04 2024 35 mins  
Post Office leadership commissioned at least 6 different investigations of varying degrees of independence and rigor into complaints about Horizon after 2010. And yet none of them got to the truth. In the next two episodes, we unpack what not to do when setting up inquiries and investigations. Opening grab from Mr Beer KC and Alice Perkins, former Post Office Limited Chair.Subseque

TWT Ask Us Anything! Part 2 - culture and integrity agencies

Oct 14 2024 31 mins  
Another great round of questions, thanks!Now for some appropriately bureaucratic disclaimers....While we have tried to be as thorough in our research as busy full time jobs and lives allow, we definitely don’t guarantee that we’ve got all the details right.If you want rigorous reporting on Robodebt, we recommend the work of Rick Morton at the Saturday Paper, Chris Knaus and Luk

TWT Ask Us Anything! Part 1 - trust in government, and how we organise ourselves

Sep 30 2024 29 mins  
Thanks for the questions folks!Now for some appropriately bureaucratic disclaimers....While we have tried to be as thorough in our research as busy full time jobs and lives allow, we definitely don’t guarantee that we’ve got all the details right.If you want rigorous reporting on Robodebt, we recommend the work of Rick Morton at the Saturday Paper, Chris Knaus and Luke Henrique

Finally, the APSC has published its findings about Robodebt: what did they find, and where to from here?

Sep 15 2024 47 mins  
The Australian Public Service Commission has released the findings of its Centralised Code of Conduct Inquiry into Robodebt.Outro grab from The West Wing, Season 3, Episode 10.Now for some appropriately bureaucratic disclaimers....While we have tried to be as thorough in our research as busy full time jobs and lives allow, we definitely don’t guarantee that we’ve got all the de

Mr Bates v Post Office part 6 - information dead ends and accountability sinks

Aug 12 2024 41 mins  
In this episode, we look at why Post Office kept prosecuting Sub Post Masters through the lens of Dan Davies' analysis in his new book The Unaccountability Machine.Opening grab from Mr Beer KC (Counsel Assisting) and Alisdair Cameron, CFO and former interim CE of Post Office Ltd.Subsequent grab from Mr Blake KC (Counsel Assisting) and Graham Brander, former Post Office Investigator

Mr Bates v Post Office part 5 - prosecuting the innocent

Jul 29 2024 42 mins  
A massive power imbalance, everyone doing the narrowest version of their jobs, and an overriding culture that assumed postmasters were thieves. These are just some of the ways Post Office ended up prosecuting postmasters for shortfalls that existed only on the computer.Opening grab from Mr Beer KC (Counsel Assisting) and Rob Wilson, former Head of the Royal Mail Group Criminal Law

The Hon John Hill, on being a Minister

Jul 08 2024 62 mins  
In this episode, former state Minister for Health and the Arts (among others) the Hon John Hill, shares his insights into what Ministers want - and what they need - from the public service.You can buy his book ‘On being a Minister’ here - and if you’re brave, share with your Minister!Now for some appropriately bureaucratic disclaimers....While we have tried to be as thorough

Andrew Podger AO: Is Thodey public sector reform on Steroids or Valium?

Jun 24 2024 60 mins  
In this second interview with former Commonwealth Secretary and Australian Public Service Commissioner Andrew Podger AO, Danielle gets to chat aboutThe pros and cons of bringing all service delivery together in a single agency The valuing of operational expertise v policy leadershipThe role of portfolio budget practices in driving RobodebtCultures of challenge and diversity of thou