Radio Interview - Abc Mid-West & Wheatbelt Geraldton
Subjects: Commonwealth public servants in WA, NDIS Disability Royal Commission, JobSeeker increase, Rewiring the Nation and Renewable Energy.
GLENN BARDON - HOST: Well, the Labor Member for Perth is Patrick Gorman, the Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister and also Assistant Minister for the Public Service. So, let's talk about his role working with the public service. And Patrick Gorman is very often a visitor to the Midwest. Good morning to you, Minister.
PATRICK GORMAN, ASSISTANT MINISTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER AND ASSISTANT MINISTER FOR THE PUBLIC SERVICE: Good morning, Glenn.
BARDON: Well, Patrick, you and I chatted not that long ago, for the Coronation of the King. It worked out pretty well, didn't it?
GORMAN: It did work out quite well. It was quite a spectacle to watch. Obviously the first one in sort of the modern satellite broadcast era. And today, in fact, we're actually releasing as the Australian government the design for the new coins which feature the King.
BARDON: And you enjoy getting out into the regions of WA. Is that something you've stepped up in recent times?
GORMAN: I've always enjoyed it. I've been here as a Member of Parliament previously to Geraldton. I came here I love Geraldton in particular. I came here for a family holiday last year. We were just down the road next door watching a Lightyear with my five-year-old son. I really find that it gives you a lot of energy. But also on the more important side of public policy development. I think when you hear from frontline public servants, which is one of the reasons I'm here today, you really get good insights into what we need to be doing as a government to make sure we're giving the best possible service to all Australians and to look after our workforce. Because we've got thousands and thousands of Commonwealth public servants here in the west and it was great to talk to some of them yesterday.
BARDON: Well, as you mentioned, you've relatively recently been made Assistant Minister for the Public Service. Enjoying that role, as it would appear.
GORMAN: I really am, yeah. Australia's got a fantastic public service and we have big challenges that we need to work with them to meet into the future. Everything from the climate transition to making sure that we have that diversified economy for the future, and then just to help people day on day. And what I spoke to people at Centrelink.yesterday about was just how some of their frontline service officers help people when they hit hard times. And I think it's really important we make sure we've got those good, quality public services for people when they need them most.
BARDON: What about the big issue in recent times? We just see the report recently released about the NDIS, and that is a massive issue for the public service and the government.
GORMAN: Yeah, the NDIS and more broadly, that Royal Commission report into disability inclusion is such an important area that we need to make sure we've got not just the funding, which is clearly there, but also the right policy settings. I spoke to some of the NDIS service officers here in Geraldton yesterday. They're really proud of the work they do. We know that there are challenges where there might not be enough providers or the right services that people need and that's a particular challenge across regional Australia and the government's working through those pieces. But also I think about the vision that was outlined in that Royal Commission report. The vision is about making sure we have a completely inclusive, accessible society for all. And I think everyone would agree with that. It's government's job to work through all of those recommendations. I think 222 recommendations. That's a serious report, which is why we've got a cross government task force set up in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet to work through all of those to make sure that we deliver on what we want. And that is that truly inclusive society where everyone gets the support they need.
BARDON: Is there an issue, though, because Federal Government is such a big organisation, they have big public services, maybe the state services can't keep up and there are people falling through the gaps.
GORMAN: Well, what I'd encourage anyone who feels like they are falling through the gaps is to reach out to one of your local service providers, potentially start with Centrelink. One of the things that I think is really great that we have now in those Centrelink.offices is they have dedicated social workers, so they can really help people connect to not just the Commonwealth Government services, but state government services, local government services or not for profit services, so that people do get what they need as an individual. And I'd really encourage, if you feel like one or any of your listeners feel like they are falling through the gaps, to reach out, to make sure that they are accessing all of the supports that are available. But what we know is that we need to keep working on these things. One of the other things I was talking to the team about yesterday was obviously we've had a significant increase to JobSeeker for those who, for whatever reason, can't get into work. Now that we know, and we've learned through the pandemic that there are people who, for structural reasons, can't find a job at any particular point in time or an unexpected unemployment event hits them. So, that's why we've increased JobSeeker. Significant increase came in on the 20th of September.
BARDON: As you mentioned, the recommendations of the NDIS inquiry. 220 recommendations. But of course there's a balance, I guess, between cutting costs and also ensuring people that need to be on get in. Is that a bit of a balancing act?
GORMAN: Well, of course, every government has to work through how do you make sure ultimately we get the best value for money for taxpayers, but also deliver what taxpayers expect, which is that anyone who has a disability and needs additional support gets that support if they're within that NDIS cohort that doesn't cover everyone with a disability. And actually there are thousands and thousands of people with disability who don't need the NDIS. And that's also a good story. We don't want to have everyone in a scheme nor anyone who needs a scheme excluded, and we're still trying to find all of those balances. I think Minister Bill Shorten is doing a fantastic job in working through all of those pieces. But as I say, when it comes to the broader piece of inclusion that comes out of the Disability Royal Commission, obviously there's a lot of work to go there. And obviously that started out of seeing some of the worst Practices, where we'd seen people experiencing abuse and neglect within the disability services sector and making sure that we had a serious, high powered Royal Commission to go and look at what was happening at a structural level and make sure that we stop that. Because obviously no one wants to see any taxpayer dollars going to anything or any service that is actually putting people in harm's way.
BARDON: You spend a lot of time, of course, in Canberra. Canberra is known as the public service capital, as it were. Of course, government runs from Canberra. Do you think the public service, though, that are based in Canberra, have a feel for what goes on in a place in regional WA?
GORMAN: They do, and I see that in a range of their briefings. But also it's very clearly my expectation that when public servants are giving advice to Government, they're thinking about how does it impact not just in Canberra, not just in the Eastern States, not just in the capitals, but for all Australians. One of the objectives of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and their policy advice is to deliver high quality policy that improves the lives of all Australians. And I always come back to that, all Australians, because that's what you ultimately want to know is that when you're doing something, you're not disproportionately, having benefits in one area, costs to another, trying to lift the entire population. I also work with what is a nerdy but very important outfit called the Office of Impact Analysis. Now, that's something that your listeners will never have heard of and may never hear of again, and that's completely fine. But they do really important work looking at all of those social, environmental and other impacts of major policy decisions to make sure that there aren't unintended consequences when government is making important policy decisions.
BARDON: And Minister, you're in the Midwest yesterday and again today. What's on the agenda for today?
GORMAN: I’ll meet with the CEO of the City today. I've got to meet with Regional Development Australia to talk about some of those big projects that are coming down the track. I met with the Midwest Development Commission yesterday. We had a really good conversation about the really exciting opportunities here when it comes to renewable energy. And we talked about the partnership between the Commonwealth Government and the State Government when it comes to what we call rewiring the nation. That's a $3 billion partnership that we have to invest in new transmission and energy infrastructure here in WA, including for the Southwest Integrated System, which covers here where we're sitting today in Geraldton. It's a really exciting opportunity. More renewable energy leads to more jobs, more stability, and it's the cheapest form of power going forward. So, that's a huge, exciting opportunity which will bring on new industry, take us further down the path of being a renewable energy superpower in the world, give support to some of those exciting new industries such as hydrogen and hydrogen export. So, that was a really encouraging discussion. I also had a great catch up with my friend Lara Dalton, the local member, and we joined some people down on the foreshore to have a little chat about the Constitution.
BARDON: Well, very good. Appreciate your time. Enjoy your day, and thanks for coming in this morning.
GORMAN: Thank you very much.