The Australian Public Service is at a pivotal moment.
It must be up to the challenges ahead.
A more dangerous world that is less predictable than ever.
Artificial intelligence is reshaping not only how we deliver services, but the very nature of how we work and live.
Australians should make no apology for wanting services that are faster.
More connected. More personalised.
And they want them now.
All of us here are focused on building a public service that can respond to this environment.
Public service is an Australian story
As Assistant Minister for the Public Service, I have the privilege of seeing the care and commitment that everyday public servants bring to their work.
Because our public service, at its core, is about Australians helping Australians.
People from all walks of life choosing a career dedicated to something larger than themselves.
It is about delivering for Australia today, while preparing for tomorrow.
And with do that by putting people and business at the centre of policy and services.
These are the building blocks of stewardship.
Leaving things in better shape than we found them.
That is in the shared history of the APS.
From one of our most challenging national moments, emerged a remarkable public servant - Herbert C. Coombs.
In the history books, you would find him called ‘H.C. Coombs.’
But in his lifetime, he was known as ‘Nugget.’
Because he was stockily built, standing at just 5 foot 3 inches.
Ironically, with a legacy that would loom large.
History comes calling
Coombs was born in 1906 in the hills of Kalamunda.
He was the son of immigrant parents.
And one of six kids growing up in the beautiful, untamed bush of the Perth Hills.
His academic record is a history of scholarships and fellowships dating from childhood to young adulthood.
When he tore open the envelope of his acceptance letter to Perth Modern School, he was embarking on a journey to shape Australia.
Coombs trained at Claremont Teachers College.
Then working – as many young Australians still do today – for a couple of years in London before coming home.
Teaching economics at Perth schools and universities.
But that all changed in an instant.
At 9:15pm on 3 September 1939, to be exact.
The moment radios across Australia all crackled and fizzed with the same address.
On every commercial and national station in the country.
Prime Minister Robert Menzies uttered the immortal words: ‘Australia is also at war.’
And in doing so changed the destiny of all Australians.
And Nugget went from classroom economic theory to being one of Treasury’s first graduate recruits.
The home front
Then, under the Curtin Government, he was appointed director of rationing.
A role directly managing wartime inflation and ensuring equity of distribution.
A smooth rollout of rationing required it to be seen as fair and necessary by those it affected.
The penalties for breaches included 6 months’ imprisonment.
But without public trust it would not work.
This revealed a neat alignment with Coombs’ long-held views of the public service:
That public servants should be able to articulate their aims and communicate directly with the public.
After the war, as director-general of the Department of Post-War Reconstruction, Coombs continued to keep the public informed and engaged in reform.
He spoke at large public gatherings – just like this one.
He explained his plan to radio audiences.
He asked Australians to think about how a better society could be built.
And he put forward a policy plan to make it happen.
Full employment.
Economic stability.
Enduring institutions.
The post war effort demanded unprecedented coordination across government.
It required clear advice, disciplined decisions and delivery of those decisions.
But it also needed Australians to understand, to care and to feel part of something larger.
But the beauty of Coombs’ approach was that it was not just focussed on the times he was living in.
It was future-facing, too.
He focussed on helping Australians transition into new roles and get back into work after the devastation of war.
And this also laid the foundations for long term economic growth.
Back then, the challenges were different.
But the responsibility was the same.
To act in the public interest.
To make disciplined decisions.
To communicate clearly and effectively with the people.
And to build for the long term.
That is stewardship in practice.
Stewardship is delivery
Australians trust the public service to deliver.
They expect services to work.
To be accessible.
To be fair.
And to be there when it matters most.
Stewardship means meeting those expectations.
Being deliberate in how we design programs.
Clear about the outcomes we deliver.
It is about ensuring fair outcomes today and improving the system for tomorrow.
And it is how we earn, and keep, the trust of Australians.
It is also what Coombs understood.
Post war reconstruction worked because it was grounded in stewardship and inherently Australian.
Disciplined, coordinated and outcome focused.
Stewardship is capability
A future ready public service must be capable.
With the right people in the right roles.
That means investing in skills across the service.
Digital capability.
Data capability.
Evaluation.
These are now fundamental.
Capability is about preparing the workforce not just for the work in front of us, but what lies ahead.
Capability and ambition go hand in hand.
Coombs understood this.
His legacy was not just policy.
It was institutions that endure because they were built with Australian households and businesses in mind.
That remains our responsibility today.
To build a service that is effective now and ready for the future.
Impact analysis
If Coombs had got rationing wrong, the impacts would have been worse than the benefits.
He had to analyse all the impacts of the policy.
And ensure lasting benefits.
I am proud to be the Minister responsible for ensuring advice to the government is accompanied by the best available analysis on impacts.
In other words, what are the impacts, what are the benefits?
One of the most powerful tools available to policy-makers is the Australian Government’s Impact Analysis Framework.
The Framework is supported by PM&C’s Office of Impact Analysis.
Impact Analysis is about giving ministers, businesses and the community confidence.
That same confidence Coombs sought.
Confidence that government decisions are properly informed, and costs and benefits properly weighed.
It has been a fundamental part of the Commonwealth’s policy process since 1986.
And has played a critical role in policy development.
The impact analysis undertaken on the vehicle emissions and fuel quality standards informed the development of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard.
But as the Productivity Commission told us last year, Impact Analysis often falls short of the desired effect.
The intent is good — but often, it is too long, or it comes too late.
I am pleased to announce this is about to change.
From 1 July, we are bringing in changes which will better ensure Impact Analysis is timely, accountable and influential.
Briefly, I will outline what is changing, what is staying the same, and why.
Just like Coombs – I am here today to put forward a policy plan, in front of you all - to make Australian Impact Analysis more effective and to get your buy-in.
A more effective approach, not more bureaucracy
Impact Analysis needs to be timely and targeted.
Timely, so ministers get the information they need when they need it.
Targeted, so added scrutiny is applied to the policies needing analysis most.
Going forward, the Impact Analysis process will focus on significant changes to rules and requirements facing consumers, workers, and businesses.
Or policies that limit the choice of goods available to consumers, or might hinder competition, will all be in scope.
Then, agencies will test the likely impacts against clear thresholds:
The first threshold is the regulatory burden on businesses and the community.
So, whether the burden will change by $20 million or more over ten years.
The second is about material impacts.
Whether the proposal is likely to have indicative impacts of $200 million or more annually on outcomes for people, businesses or community organisations.
And the third has to do with how those impacts are distributed.
Whether the proposal is likely to disproportionately and significantly impact a particular cohort, such as small businesses.
These changes are about agencies providing more targeted analysis on what matters, when it matters.
Clearer, more concise analysis to support better regulation
The next thing we are changing is how Impact Analyses are presented.
If you have seen a published Impact Analysis recently, you will know they can run to over a hundred pages.
Nugget Coombs was an expert economist.
But he understood his work meant nothing unless he had the social licence to embed the wartime effort in people’s everyday lives.
Today, things are no different.
Under the new framework, the information will instead be presented in a clear and concise Dashboard.
Easier for decision-makers to digest.
Easier for stakeholders to understand.
And all the most important details still there:
The policy problem being solved.
The rationale for government intervention.
Who has been consulted.
What is the proposed policy option.
And the likely costs and benefits, including the change in the regulatory burden.
And – as the Government Writing Handbook’s number one fan – I can confidently say, clear and concise is always the way to go.
The new framework will also support best practice regulation
There are a few other things we are changing too:
Before rolling over existing significant regulations, agencies will need to develop a Dashboard to consider whether regulations are still meeting their objectives.
And before adopting a bespoke Australian standard, agencies will need to provide a Detailed Impact Analysis.
Demonstrating that the benefit to the community outweighs the cost of deviating from existing International Standards.
Keeping regulations up-to-date and relevant, and only adopting bespoke standards where it makes sense to, are essential to maintaining best practice.
Transparency and accountability remain a core feature
Finally, to what is not changing under the new framework.
And that is our commitment to transparency.
The government’s promise to publish every Impact Analysis, and to track how decisions change regulatory burden across the economy, remains unchanged.
We are enormously fortunate to have the OIA — and the new framework — to help give decision makers the evidence they need, when they need it.
Because a fit-for-purpose regulatory system is essential to unlock productivity and a dynamic economy — for all Australians.
Just like Coombs in our postwar recovery – we are dealing with the pressing policy challenges of today, while also building Australia’s future.
Compromising on either of these goals is untenable - and with this new Impact Analysis framework – now no longer necessary.
A public service for future generations
Public servants have a duty to rise to the challenges of today.
While strengthening the nation for future generations.
That is the Australian way.
The Australian story.
A strong public service is disciplined, capable and focused on outcomes for all.
That is the standard all of you must set in your leadership.
That was the standard Nugget Coombs set.
He took Australian ideas, to respond to Australian circumstances – in an Australian way.
And he was able to do this by putting people and business at the centre of his policies and services.
It helped guide Australia through its one of its most defining periods.
The challenges we face today might be different.
But the responsibility is the same.
To make decisions that endure.
To build institutions that are stronger over time.
And to ensure the public service is ready for what comes next.
That is what our new Impact Analysis framework will deliver.
And why it is so important.
Every policy, every service deserves to be fully considered in a timely and effective way.
We need to be able to build an APS which is future proof, but responsive to the Australian households and businesses it serves.
And puts people and business at the centre of policy and services, not at the fringes.
Every policy.
Every milestone completed.
Every piece of work delivered by deadline.
And every perspective incorporated builds Australia’s future.
What larger responsibility could there be?
Conclusion
To each public servant here and listening in – may I leave you with a reflection on H.C. Coombs’ nickname.
Nugget.
And why he loved it.
To the world – it meant small, short, unimpressive.
But to Coombs himself, he saw it as a mark of endearment.
Like a nugget of gold – small in size, but significant in value.
That is the work each of you bring to the wider public service.
Every piece - every nugget – of work you produce contributes to the Service itself.
And is of tremendous value to the Australian people you serve.
Understand that responsibility and understand that privilege.
The Australian Public Service is not owned by any one generation.
It is held in trust.
Our job is simple, and profound:
To leave it stronger than we found it.
That is stewardship in practice.
And that is a future ready public service.
Thank you.