Government Administration

The propensity for Australians to move about more often and over greater distances as part of their employment, recreation and social life presents challenges for governments in the design and management of equitable fiscal policy to fund infrastructure, education, health and welfare and other services traditionally predicated on p ....

This Policy Issue Review investigates claims that Fly-in Fly-out/ Drive-in Drive-out (FIFO/DIDO) groups are placing a burden on Australian rural health care services. Based on a rapid review of current literature, and including mining and seasonal workers, as well as grey nomads, the size and health profiles of these FIFO/DIDO groups are reviewed ....

According to a growing number of commentators, the agricultural sectors and rural areas of advanced Western nations are experiencing a transition from productivism to post-productivism. In Britain and Western Europe, where this putative transition is most evident, the salient features of the shift include: the gradual removal of farm-level subsid ....

Key points • Many Australian farmers and rural communities have been experiencing hardship from the latest severe and prolonged drought. While this is not new to dryland farming, 'irrigation drought' is uncharted territory. • Australia has always had a variable climate, with drought being a recurring feature. Looking to the f ....

Climate change is expected to increase the frequency, severity and length of drought periods in Australia. Government assistance for drought events is guided by the current National Drought Policy and is intended as a short term measure to help farmers prepare for, manage and recover from drought. Support is provided to farmers and ....

Governments will need to consider a range of issues when purchasing water for environmental flows. For instance, they need to consider whether it is more cost effective to purchase water directly from irrigators or to subsidise investments in more efficient water use technology, and retain some of the savings for the environment. T ....

Detailed response to findings of Commonwealth Grants Commission 'Report on Indigenous funding' which see also at B C734.62/R1; outlines background to commissioning of report including concern with outcomes which below reasonable expectations despite increasing commitment of resources; discusses circumstances of Indigenous Australia ....

The Productivity Commission was asked to examine the economic and social impact of competition policy and related infrastructure reforms introduced at the Commonwealth, State and local government levels, and to identify measures to increase the flow of benefits or mitigate any transitional costs arising from the implementation of c ....

Over recent years, the issue of farm poverty has been addressed by Government through a number of schemes, including the Drought Relief Payment, the Farm Household Support Scheme and, more recently, the Farm Family Restart program. The effectiveness of these types of programs can be influenced by the nature of the policy development process which ....

The objective of the audit was to determine the extent to which ATSIC's grant management practices meet identified better practice standards. This audit concentrated on Community Development Employment Projects (CDEP) grants and regional council discretionary funding, representing approximately 84% of regional council grant funding ....

A series of national and state public inquiries into the financial sustainability of local government have demonstrated that all Australian local government jurisdictions face a daunting local infrastructure maintenance and renewal backlog. Various solutions to the problem have been advanced in the literature, including the establishment of an Au ....

This study explores the understanding of the concept of accountability held by Victorian local government managers and elected councillors in a New Public Management (NPM) environment. Accountability involves relationships between superiors and subordinates and in the case of local government between councillors, management and members of the com ....

Excerpt from Polity, capability, culture : thinking through the next phase of Australian Indigenous affairs by Peter Botsman; full version is held at B B750.72/P1; argues that under the Commonwealth in regional and remote Australia 'things went backward, from a foothold in the real economy via the pastoral industry, or from the all ....

The author argues that increased government regulation of farming and other rural community activities is smothering rural economic growth and farming families' participation in voluntary community groups. The variable and lower prices given for their produce and reduced local services are also affecting rural life and communities. ....