Democracy & Accountability

Voice to Parliament

by Elizabeth Morison

The Voice to Parliament would represent Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people by advising Federal Parliament on matters of significance to Indigenous Australians… continue reading →

Funding for the National Anti-Corruption Commission

by Mahendra Chitrarasu

The Budget delivers the funding for a National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) with teeth. It comes five years after the National Integrity Committee of former judges formed to make the case for a strong national integrity commission… continue reading →

Underfunded accountability institutions

by Elizabeth Morison

In the months since the previous Federal government’s 2022-23 budget, integrity issues have  become national concerns, from the former Prime Minister’s secret ministries to the growth in cronyism in appointments to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal… continue reading →

Parliamentary Library and staff allocations

by Bill Browne

The Albanese Government has set aside an additional $11 million over four years to increase the capacity of the Parliamentary Library. This is a welcome increase for the Library, which suffered cuts in the last budget… continue reading →

Only partial restoration of ABC funding and function

by Robyn Seth-Purdie

The budget has restored the $83.7 million that Australia’s national broadcaster lost as a result of the Coalition government’s 2018 freeze on annual indexation, and provided additional international services funding for the ABC to expand its Indo-Pacific content. This, together with a commitment to five-year funding for the ABC from 1 July 2023, signals that the new government values the contribution of the ABC to the quality of public debate domestically and abroad. The ABC is currently funded on a three-year cycle, although the Australia Institute has found that in practice the cycle was “unsteady”, and not always adhered to by governments… continue reading →

Any pork left in the discretionary grants barrel?

by Robyn Seth-Purdie

The Albanese Government has been highly critical of its predecessor’s allocation of funds under discretionary grant programs, some of which gave rise to claims of pork barrelling… continue reading →

Not for publication: Secret spending in the Budget

by Mahendra Chitrarasu

Secret spending in the Budget has fallen from a Morrison-era peak, but the long-term trend towards concealment should concern Australians who care about transparency… continue reading →