Do public inquiries matter? tracking inquiry implementation in Australia. This project aims to assess the effectiveness of public inquiries. Governments rely on public inquiries yet we know little about the extent to which they facilitate policy learning. This project will track the implementation of recommendations generated by federal inquiries in Australia since 2000: evaluating the extent to which recommendations were implemented and the difference they have made. Expected outcomes include a ....Do public inquiries matter? tracking inquiry implementation in Australia. This project aims to assess the effectiveness of public inquiries. Governments rely on public inquiries yet we know little about the extent to which they facilitate policy learning. This project will track the implementation of recommendations generated by federal inquiries in Australia since 2000: evaluating the extent to which recommendations were implemented and the difference they have made. Expected outcomes include academic findings and best practice guidance to government about the contemporary value of inquiries. The findings may support a best-practice manual for public officials.Read moreRead less
Police corruption: an underestimated legitimacy and security risk. This project analyses police corruption in four states and makes recommendations for reducing it. While most states now recognise corruption as a problem, many are reluctant to address the issue of police corruption; yet when police officers collude with organised crime (for example, in drugs or arms trafficking), corruption can be a serious security risk.
Realising socio-economic rights: law and the politics of access to public services in Indonesia. This project seeks to identify the conditions under which justiciable legal frameworks or socio-economic rights are effective in promoting realisation of these rights in developing countries. The empirical focus is on Indonesia during the post-Suharto era and rights related to free basic education, water, and free health care for the poor.
Policy agendas in the Australian Commonwealth Government. Who leads the agenda: the government; the public or the media? Is legislation 'normal business' or a response to crisis? Does changing the government really change much? By systematically analysing legislation, the media and public opinion over a forty year period this project can answer these questions more thoroughly than ever before.
The institutional dynamics of banking crisis and reform in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia and Canada. The recent banking crisis is an event of compelling policy significance. This project examines its causes and, in particular, aims to explain why the Australian and Canadian banking systems proved relatively resilient during the crisis and why the United Kingdom and United States proved so vulnerable.
Non-Indigenous pathways to reconciliation in Australia. International experience confirms that reconciliation is a fraught and challenging endeavour. Many consider the formal reconciliation process in Australia to have been a failure, yet the need for a more effective engagement between Indigenous and other Australians remains pressing, particularly in light of a forthcoming referendum. This project will draw on international evidence and new empirical data to examine the Australian experience o ....Non-Indigenous pathways to reconciliation in Australia. International experience confirms that reconciliation is a fraught and challenging endeavour. Many consider the formal reconciliation process in Australia to have been a failure, yet the need for a more effective engagement between Indigenous and other Australians remains pressing, particularly in light of a forthcoming referendum. This project will draw on international evidence and new empirical data to examine the Australian experience of reconciliation, asking how the process of reconciliation in Australia can connect to the attitudes of non-Indigenous people in ways that may prompt a deeper engagement with Indigenous needs and aspirations.Read moreRead less
Prime ministers: explaining why some succeed and others fail. Some prime ministers succeed but others fail, even though both nominally have the same powers. Why is there a difference? This project will examine their statecraft to explain how they use those powers in Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Canada and with what effect.
Hierarchy to high-performance? Evaluating 30yrs of Senior Executive Service. This project aims to evaluate whether Senior Executive Service (SES) schemes, introduced in the public sector the 1980s, have enabled the delivery of superior performance. This study will examine all nine Australian jurisdictions, across time in order to identify how and why institutional frameworks changed, analyse the composition of the SES and identify their changing roles and accountabilities. The expected outcomes ....Hierarchy to high-performance? Evaluating 30yrs of Senior Executive Service. This project aims to evaluate whether Senior Executive Service (SES) schemes, introduced in the public sector the 1980s, have enabled the delivery of superior performance. This study will examine all nine Australian jurisdictions, across time in order to identify how and why institutional frameworks changed, analyse the composition of the SES and identify their changing roles and accountabilities. The expected outcomes will provide a better understanding of the profile and roles of executives who lead policy development and service delivery, and an evaluation of whether current institutional frameworks optimise their capacity to perform their role.Read moreRead less
Innovative democracy? Changing approaches to citizen engagement in Australia, the UK and Denmark. Many question the future of representative democracy in its current form given growing levels of civic disengagement. This project charts, explains and critically examines government responses to this disengagement in three countries, Australia, the UK and Denmark, and across three policy areas, environment, immigration and youth.
State-owned enterprises and the government in China: who drives? China's large state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are investing extensively overseas, and particularly in Australia. This project examines how and to what extent the Chinese government exercises political control over these SOEs. It seeks to determine whether they are ultimately controlled by the Communist Party or semi-independent market privateers.