Hats, Chinese Walls and Contagion: Tony Abbott & the DPMC

Hats, Chinese walls and contagion: exploring the implications of Abbott’s decision to be Prime Minister of Indigenous Affairs and women

Dr Gemma Carey, Senior Lecturer & NHMRC Fellow, UNSW Canberra

In 2013, when the Liberal government came to power, Prime Minister Abbott fundamentally changed the nature of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C). In order to signal his intent for making inroads into the intractable problem of Indigenous inequality and gender inequality, Abbott appointed himself the Minister for Indigenous Affairs and the Minister for Women. This act triggered a major restructure of government departments. Functions, related to these ministerial roles, were brought into PM&C. While the Office for Women (under various guises) has come and gone from PM&C, never in the history of the Australian Government has a large service-delivery, or line, agency such as Indigenous affairs been moved into a central agency. This change – triggered by a political decision – resulted in over 800 staff being moved into PM&C. This change has meant that service-delivery staff across Australia (including remote areas) are now overseen by PM&C, representing a fundamental shift in the role of this central agency. This talk explores the ramifications of this decision.