#Lifestyle Choice, education & informed citizenry: a wake up call

Prime Minister Tony Abbott recently shocked and dismayed Indigenous communities and leaders with his "lifestyle choice" comments supporting the closure of up to 150 remote Indigenous communities in Western Australia - and galvanised the #SOSBlakAustralia protests on Twitter, Facebook and real life.

Legal academic Kate Galloway says his comments should also serve as a wake up call to universities and for academics in all disciplines, and particularly lawyers who are at the frontline of justice and law making.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade24 March 2015cross-sector relationships

Australia's housing crisis needs political leadership: what gets in the way?

We've had a sniff of debate in recent weeks about negative gearing and what its abolition could mean to government revenue and housing affordability. Yet at election times, writes Terry Burke, housing problems get no political traction.

A lesson from the UK: Making things happen at the implementation Unit

Thinking good thoughts isn’t enough. Chris Mullin, Deputy Director, of the UK Govenrment Cabinet Office’s Implementation Unit, describes how he and his colleagues are working with departments to get things done. This piece was first published on the UK Gov's Civil Service Quarterly blog.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade18 March 2015policy making

The Twenty-First Century Public Servant: Research findings

Today's post is from Catherine Needham and Catherine Mangan and was first published on the 21st Century Public Servant blog.

The report highlights themes within the research and Catherine and Catherine highlight some here.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade17 March 2015policy making

After McClure - 'upgrading' the public debate on welfare

The McClure Review provides us with the opportunity to 'upgrade' the welfare policy debate and start to genuinely frame welfare as social investment. Prof. Paul Smyth explores that there needs to be a real understanding of what welfare as investment actually means, with the right social policy nous and frameworks to ensure it is not another punitive measure to individualise social policy problems.

Is policy a dodo?

Speeding up the “evolution” of policy could help promote the survival of the fittest in policy solutions, argues Stephen Muers, Director, Sentencing and Rehabilitation, Ministry of Justice, United Kingdom, in this post originally published on Civil Service Quarterly.

What works? The rise of 'experimental' government

Public service professions have lagged behind the medical profession in using empirical evidence to guide decision making. David Halpern, National Adviser on What Works & CEO of Behavioural Insights Team, explains how the emergence of ‘What Works Centres’ can change this, and outlines the case for ‘radical incrementalism’.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade5 March 2015policy making

Using International legal processes to influence government policy

Strategic participation in international legal processes can be extremely valuable for NGOs undertaking policy and law reform work. The Universal Periodic Review, a process of the United Nations Human Rights Council, is one method by which Australia’s human rights record is assessed on the international stage. Internationally and in Australia, the UPR is proving to be a useful mechanism for NGOs to engage with governments on issues of human rights and related law and policy. Anna Lyons, Senior Lawyer at Justice Connect Homeless Law explains.

Policy and governance, Advocacy, IssuesPower to Persuade26 February 2015policy making, data and evidence for advocacy, law

The social economy: Working together towards the common good

There is a noticeable shift from purely profit-driven capitalism towards the notion of an 'integrated social citizen.' The founder of Pro Bono Australia, Karen Mahlab, sees it happening in Australia and around the world. This post first appeared on the Open Forum blog.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade20 February 2015politics and democracy

Urban and Regional Australia: The approach and major contributions of the Whitlam, Hawke and Keating Governmenets

The future of national urban policy in Australia has been in doubt since the closure of the federally-funded Major Cities Unit in late 2013. In this post, former Deputy Prime Minister Brian Howe reflects on the contributions of previous federal governments to coordinated policy, planning and infrastructure investment in Australia's cities.

Policy and governance, IssuesPower to Persuade16 February 2015ideology, urban planning

Fix the ABS, don't merge ABS and AIHW

Last year we ran pieces by Brian Howe and Richard Madden on the proposed changes to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Below, Richard provides further insight into the challenges facing government statistical agencies in response to a piece in the Sydney Morning Herald. Richard is a Professor at the University of Sydney and has been Director of AIHW and previously Deputy Australian Statistician

Policy and governancePower to Persuade13 February 2015government

The Pleasures ans Sorrows of Civil Service Accountability

Civil Servants have significant influence on the lives of the individuals they govern. Yet we have little knowledge as to how Civil Servants themselves are governed.

Mark Jarvis has been conducting research to understand how civil servants are held to account. Whilst there is a lot being done well, Jarvis identifies ways in which civil service accountability could be improved and suggests there is room for improvement in the way we think about accountability.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade9 February 2015accountability

Social Policy Whisperer: A Scott Morrison Fantasy

I dreamt I had a phone call from Scott Morrison now Minister for Social Services. He explained that his newly repentant government had realised it was out of step with the Australian people on social policy matters. He wanted to establish better communication with the people and, hearing that I had studied Australian social policy for so many years, wondered if we might chat about the ‘Australian Way’.

Misunderstanding data: can researchers simplify longitudinal data for policymakers without it leading to errors?

Below, Leon Feinstein provides further background on the longitudinal data discussed and defends the findings against some key misunderstandings of the data. This post first appeared on the LSE Impact Blog.

Can you seperate the facts from beliefs when making policy?

There's a broad consensus that the NLP's loss in Queensland and rumours of a leadership challenge can be sheeted back to poor policy choices by both governments. Below, a timely piece from Paul Cairney (@Cairneypaul) on whether personal beliefs can in fact be separated from facts when making policy. Paul Cairney is Professor of Politics and Public Policy at the University of Stirling.

This piece originally featured on Paul's personal Blog.

OUTCOMES FOR THE MOST DISADVANTAGED: Competition verses co-operation?

The Harper Review proposed increased competition in the social services sector. Below, Vin Martin & Dennis Fitzgerald from Catholic Social Services Australia respond.

Social Policy Whisperer: Harnessing the economy to the Good Society - a policy strategy for the church and community activists 2015

This is an excerpt from a talk given last night to Social Policy Connections AGM by Dr Paul Smyth (full paper will shortly be available on the SPC website http://www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au/ ). It is a call to action for faith-based organisations and advocates, to come out unequivocally and assertively with the message that the Good Society is created in spaces and through narratives that the weakening PaleoLiberal rationale cannot reach or answer.

There's nothing so useful as a good theory

In a recent blog post, Dr Gemma Carey of Australian National University discusses the challenges inherent in the current policy formation process – including the outsourcing of government functions to a range of non-governmental agencies, the increased complexity of ‘wicked’ social problems, and the chaotic and opportunistic policy process itself. In this follow-up article, Dr Kathy Landvogt and Susan Maury, both of Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand, explain how The Power to Persuade responds to this policy milieu.

Policy and governanceGood Shepherd27 November 2014policy making

Does the language of complexity mix well with the language of public sector accountability

Complexity and systems science is getting a lot of interest in public policy, and related areas such as public health. But how well does it fit with existing public sector accountability structures? Below, Paul Cairney explores these issues in the UK context. This post originally appeared on his personal blog. Paul is a Professor of Politics and Public Policy at the University of Stirling, you can follow him on twitter at @Cairneypaul.

Policy and governance, AdvocacyPower to Persuade26 November 2014accountability, communication

How a national Aboriginal health authority used social media to bridge the divide and Close the Gap

In the lead up to 2013 federal election, NACCHO (the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation) developed a comprehensive social media/Twitter based political campaign built around the simple key message that “Investing in Aboriginal Community Controlled Health makes economic sense”.

Colin Cowell was NACCHO’s National Communications and Media Advisor from 2012-2014. In the post below he outlines the aims and impact of that campaign. Chosen earlier this year as Radio National's Twitterati of the Week, he also offers '8 tips for tweeting your next health event' and some key questions to consider to guide your social media efforts.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade20 November 2014networked governance

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