Part 1 [4] | Part 2 [5] | Part 3
Yes Minister depicted a world in which guileless politicians were successfully managed by wiley civil servants determined to maintain control over the processes of government. In The Hollowmen, power has shifted to politicised backroom staffers whose only measurement of success is a spike in opinion polls. How does our system of government actually work? Has the Australian public service become so “flexible” that it bends over backwards to meet the political needs of the government of the day? Or does it still have the spine to be “frank and fearless”, no matter how politically inconvenient the advice? This Adelaide Festival of Ideas panel looks at the issue from a variety of perspectives. Hosted by Peter Mares (ABC Radio National), it consists of former WA Premier Geoff Gallop, former Secretary of Dept of Prime Minister and Cabinet Dr Peter Shergold, former Senator Natasha Stott Despoja and health advocate Dr Alex Wodak.
Adelaide Festival of Ideas, July 2009