This issue

– New Public Management and public services
– economic uncertainty in post-COVID cities
– New Zealand's frameworks for preventing family violence
– policy lessons from catastrophic events
– poverty in Australia
– policy podcasts for your playlist
Plus what I'm reading.

Research brief: Has New Public Management improved public services? ​

A paper in Governance examines whether New Public Management reforms have improved the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of public services. It finds success or failure depends on the administrative, political and policy context. Read our brief on the paper. 

Reimagining Government

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the importance of governments in dealing with a society-wide crisis, but also provided us with an opportunity to rethink how they serve their citizens. ANZSOG and the Centre for Public Impact are Reimagining Government in a series of six webinars, which brings together senior practitioners, academics and leading thinkers from across the globe.

These thinkers will be guided by the ‘enablement paradigm’  - the concept that the best role for government is not to manage or control, but to create the conditions that lead to good outcomes for society.  The final webinar will be held on 30 July and 13 August and will discuss how governments can reorient to learning.

Navigating economic uncertainty in post-COVID cities ​

A Monash University report maps the geography and demographics of COVID-vulnerable employment areas in all suburbs in Australia’s five largest capital cities. The research aims to assist policymakers assess the risk of employment vulnerability as the impacts of COVID-19 evolve. 

Key findings  

• COVID-19 restrictions highlight many employment areas are vulnerable due to a lack of economic diversity and that vulnerable employment is concentrated in specific places. 

• The most vulnerable employment areas contain large shares of service-based employment and lack a diverse employment base. They are found throughout the metropolitan areas but most concentrated in inner suburbs. 

• The most resilient places have a more diversified industrial employment mix and do not rely on any single sector. 

• Communities in the outer suburbs are home to more people that work in low-wage, part-time, vulnerable employment. 

Recommendations for more resilient employment areas 

• Preserving existing inner and middle suburban industrial land. 

• Developing mixed-use employment areas that incorporate light industrial production. 

• Building community infrastructure and employment hubs in the outer suburbs. 

• Supporting the interdependence between manufacturing and creative industries. 

• Investing in workforce skills building programs tied to educational recovery in key areas like “essential manufacturing” (medical supplies, recycling, food) and communications technologies. 

Community-led solutions to prevent family violence ​

The New Zealand government has launched three five-year frameworks for the prevention of family violence across Aotearoa/New Zealand. Communities have been central to the development of these frameworks. 

1. E Tū Whānau Mahere Rautaki 

This is a Māori initiative (kaupapa). Emerging evidence validates the importance of cultural values to engage extended familes (whānau) and communities and to trigger behavioural change. The framework is underpinned by a strengths-based theory of change, guided by the Te Ao Māori worldview that the universe is dynamic. It is moving from one state to another: from a state of unrealised potential (Te Kore) to a state of ‘becoming’ or ‘knowing’ (Te Pō) to a state of enlightenment or wisdom (Te Ao Mārama).  

2. Pasefika Proud Pathways for Change 

Pasefika Proud is a Pacific response to family violence issues for families and communities in New Zealand. It focuses on community-led solutions that harness the power of Pacific cultural values and frameworks to encourage violence-free, respectful relationships that support Pacific peoples to thrive. Community-led change is central to the Pasefika Proud approach. 

3. Campaign for Action 

This campaign uses public health, community action and social marketing approaches to shift harmful norms and attitudes and promote positive behaviour change in men. The aim is to: 

• create the conditions that motivate and support long-term behaviour change in men using violence and at risk of using violence 

• contribute to the primary prevention of intimate partner violence by disrupting and addressing factors that are identified as root causes or drivers of harm or are reinforcing factors. 

The Bennett Institute for Public Policy at Cambridge University released this report after the third anniversary of London’s Grenfell Tower fire. The report examines why we find it difficult to learn from catastrophic events to bring about change.  

The following issues were identified 

1. Focus on regulatory requirements rather than doing what is right for people. The focus is on industry meeting its formal regulatory requirements. There needs to be a culture shift to focusing on doing the right thing for people who may be affected.  

2. Differing perceptions. A lack of cognitive diversity can reduce the ability to learn from and prevent catastrophic events with leaders often coming from similar social and professional backgrounds. A lack of diversity can lead to ‘group-think’ and an inbuilt bias towards optimism when identifying and mitigating risks. 

3. Lack of diverse voices. A lack of involvement of frontline staff and users / customers reduces the ability to learn. These groups provide a valuable source of detailed information which is untapped if ignored by decision-makers. 

4. Failure to take opportunities to learn. Despite opportunities to learn from previous events, these opportunities are often not taken. This includes outcomes from formal inquiries and inquests.  

5. Organisational systems, processes and cultures. There can be a lack of follow through on the implementation of recommendations from formal inquiries. There is no independent process of accountability to ensure recommendations are implemented and effective. 

Poverty in Australia ​

The latest Australian Council for Social Services and UNSW Sydney poverty report has revealed more than 3 million Australians are living below the poverty line, including 774,000 children. This equates to one-in-eight people, including one-in-six children. 

Key findings 

• Being unemployed remains the greatest risk to living in poverty, with two-thirds (66%) of people in households where the main income-earner is unemployed living in poverty. 

• Relying on social security rather than a wage means being about five times more likely to live in poverty. 

• Renters are almost twice as likely to live in poverty as homeowners with public housing tenants at greatest risk. 

• Families with children with a female main income earner are more than twice as likely to be in poverty as those with a male main income earner. 

• Almost half the children in single parent families live in poverty. 

• Poverty in wage-earning households is concentrated in families with children. 

Solutions to poverty  

The report points to the need to: 

• Set a serious goal of full employment 

• Commit to a flexible employment and training guarantee to improve the employment prospects of people unemployed long-term 

• Permanently lift social security payments (including supplements) to above the poverty line to shield people from poverty when they cannot secure employment 
• Increase Rent Assistance so that it offers real support to people renting privately in different rental markets around the country 
• Build more social housing to improve the supply of secure and affordable homes, especially for people at risk of homelessness. 

Policy podcasts for your playlist ​

This podcast from ANU’s Crawford School of Public Policy features Annabel Crabb discussing how COVID-19 has altered the country's political landscape. The success of the National Cabinet has shown politicians the value that Australians place on political cooperation. But can the government use this changed landscape to tackle the policy challenges facing the country? 

‘Til the next issue

Maria Katsonis