The Accountability Round Table
The Accountability Round Table is dedicated to improving standards of accountability, transparency, ethical behaviour and democratic practice in Commonwealth and State parliaments and governments across Australia. More here.
The first task is to find the right answer…. Public service and the decline of capability
The Jim Carlton Annual Integrity Lecture was delivered by Glyn Davis AC, Distinguished Professor of Political Science on 7 May 2021 at the Melbourne Law School, Melbourne University - a collaboration between the Accountability Round Table (ART) and the Centre for...
Why should we tolerate self-serving politicians?
Dr Colleen Lewis, ANU, writes in the Canberra Times this week: The time has come for hypocritical and self-serving political decision-making to cease. For too long our members of Parliament have either made themselves the exception to the rules they impose on others,...
Rorts register
The Accountability Round Table has developed a register of notable recent rorts or alleged rorts at Federal and State level. We define a rort as ‘any arrangement or practice that enables, or results in, the misuse of public resources, assets or powers for personal or...
Integrity Bill workshop
This Workshop on 29 January is your opportunity to contribute to ART’s submission on the Commonwealth Integrity Commission Bill (CIC) to the Attorney-General’s Department. The workshop is your opportunity to contribute to ART's submission on the Commonwealth Integrity...
The reforms we want from the Federal Government
An Integrity System for Australia
The reforms in brief:
A National Integrity System that is proactive, preventive, coordinated and cooperative | A National Integrity Commission that is independent, has investigative powers, makes recommendations and findings of fact, can investigate the judiciary | Parliamentary Integrity Commissioner
Political donations regime & election funding
The reforms in brief:
Caps of ~$1,000 on donations | Real time disclosure | Limits on election campaign expenditure incl. third party entities | Sanctions for electoral breaches | An independent body for public funding | Laws that require truth in political advertising
Civil society engagement
The reforms in brief:
support civic participation in the OGP | value public participation in decisions and policy | recognise the benefits of public engagement, including that of women | make policy and decisions more transparent | allow NFPs freedom of expression, association and opinion | greater collaboration
see more here …
Data in politics & government
The reforms in brief:
Ban covert digital techniques of influence | remove electoral & privacy act exemptions | supervise government data collection | recognise that personal data cannot be de-identified | control profiling for political use | control government buying-in data | cover social media in advertising rules | ban government data on-selling | citizen opt-in rights
Policy on the big issues – global warming
The reforms in brief:
An evidence-based, whole of government approach to the environment | a transparent mechanism to drive down emissions | government role in decarbonizing solutions | cooling off period for public officers going into the private sector
Lobbyists
The reforms in brief:
In-house lobbyists incl. in Register | matters discussed disclosed | documents made public | funds, gifts & events declared | oversight of Code & Register by the National Integrity System | campaign donations & expenditure limits | more public engagement in decisions | Senate role in countering undue influence
Integrity Lecture, Awards
Submissions
National Integrity Commission, OAIC, OGP