Having a Say - Innovation in Governance
- 1. remoteFOCUS Having your Say: Innovations in Governance in Remote Australia Presentation to Desert Knowledge Virtual Meeting Place Desert Innovation Festival ¨C Australian Innovation Festival Dr Bruce Walker Project Director remoteFOCUS Project May 2012
- 2. Remote Australia 2
- 3. Characteristics of Remote Australia Geography Demography Economy Social 3
- 4. Characteristics of Remote Australia Variable Climate Geography ?Extremes of weather ?Unpredictability Patchy Resources ?Low soil fertility Demography ?Unreliable water ?Natural resource enclaves Under-capitalised Infrastructure ?Skewed investments link to global Economy economy Settlement Pattern ?Determined for a past era ?Impacted by technology and government policy Social 4
- 5. Characteristics of Remote Australia Sparse mobile population ?Great distance to economic and Geography political centres ?Government has prominent role FIFO ?Change to resource sector business model Demography ?Tourism competes with mining ?Increasing expatriate outlook ?Not tuned to local diversity Small Business Sector ?Significant contribution to local Economy employment Outmigration of Young People Long Term Resident Population of Aboriginal People ?Current policy changes causing Social change and movement 5
- 6. Characteristics of Remote Australia ? Historically minerals, cattle, tourism Geography create wealth ? Wealth production not matched by investment in local labour or communities ? Productivity is lower Demography ? Chronic underinvestment in public services ? Benefits accrue in larger urban centres like Perth Remote Australia is on the periphery of Economy Australian democracy. It is characterised by a dual economy and absence of a market that might deliver outcomes without government Social interventions. 6
- 7. Characteristics of Remote Australia Geography ? local institutions are being overwhelmed ? many are unsuited to the Demography tasks they confront ? they are unable to create durable and equitable Economy arrangements to manage conflict, deliver services or sponsor entrepreneurial activity Social 7
- 8. Five Propositions: 1 Remote Australia confronts extraordinarily diverse and complex local realities. Common issues that are globally familiar: Common to regions where people reside remote from centres of economic & political power but are facing rapid social and economic change 2 Present governance arrangements are not well attuned to the circumstances that are emerging in remote Australia and public policy has limited influence 3 There are ways of remedying these governance issues, but the more promising prospects involve greater degrees¡ªand varying patterns¡ªof decentralised governance and community engagement 4 Normal legislative politics are unlikely to result in structural reforms. Special purpose cross-party initiatives, political commitment and support from business, professional and community organisations is required 5 In the absence of a narrative that embraces micro economic reform and establishes the national interest in remote Australia, and a settlement pattern that supports that national interest, nothing is going to change 8 8
- 9. Five things people in remote Australia want but don¡¯t get: 1. a say in decisions that affect them 2. equitable and sustainable financial flows 3. better services and a locally responsive public service 4. local control and accountability where possible; 5. inclusion in the greater Australian narrative. 9
- 10. What Governments Say: Dept Finance Productivity Commission MAC Reports ANAO 9 Reviews of Whole of Government FaHCSIA WA Economic Audit 10
- 11. What Governments Say: Government intentions proved persistently impossible to translate into practice 11
- 12. What Governments Say: No official body has ever questioned the basic framework for program delivery or asked whether governance might itself be a primary contributor to policy failings. 12
- 13. What Governments Say: The systems of government work against change 13
- 14. International experience: UK & OECD Reports ? Place based approaches ? Localism Bills ? Innovation Regions ? Experimentalist/ Pragmatist approaches ? Relational contracting and learning by doing 14
- 15. Why has this happened ? 15
- 16. Why has this happened ? 30 years of New Public Management Reforms have shaped how governments ? manage the economy, ? deliver services ? commit to public welfare 16
- 17. Why has this happened ? 30 years of New NPM Reforms Public Management have had Reforms have shaped how governments ? manage the economy, ? very uneven effects in remote Australia ? deliver services ? commit to public welfare 17
- 18. Why has this happened ? 30 years of New NPM Reforms Public Management have led to Reforms ? a rise in executive power have shaped how governments ? political administrative ? manage the economy, centralisation ? deliver services ? the fragmentation of government ? commit to public welfare ? problems of accountability 18
- 19. The present configuration of governance policy and practice is not working in remote Australia 19
- 20. In this context there are severe limits to what can be achieved through better coordination or more efficient service delivery 20
- 21. For large parts of remote Australia the notion that the market will deliver positive outcomes ¨C in services, settlement patterns, environmental management, and wider social inclusion ¨C is a fiction 21
- 22. To resolve ¡®wicked¡¯ problems in remote Australia governments have resorted to whole of government and strategic intervention approaches 22
- 23. o rk t w ll no w i m e e sa f th e o o r M 23
- 24. Six structural dysfunctions erode the capacity of the present structure of government to administer remote Australia. 24
- 25. Six structural dysfunctions erode the capacity of the present structure of government to administer remote Australia. There is not only a delivery and local engagement gap but a profound systemic gap covering the development of strategies for remote Australia 25
- 26. New Governance Principles The nature and pace of change in remote Australia, the ongoing contest as people respond and adjust to change necessitates creation of regional governance structures. 26
- 27. New Governance Principles The nature and pace of change in remote Australia, the ongoing contest as people respond and adjust to change necessitates creation of regional governance structures. These structures need to endure over time and be above the contest 27
- 28. Lessons for Remote Australia Economic policy and practice, rather than a single focus on subsidies, 1 welfare and ¡®services¡¯, must be at the heart of policy on remote Australia. 28
- 29. Lessons for Remote Australia Economic policy and practice, rather than a single focus on subsidies, 1 welfare and ¡®services¡¯, must be at the heart of policy on remote Australia. Government needs to do more than set macro-economic conditions ¨C it 2 needs to be an active partner in business/livelihood with community and private sector. 29
- 30. Lessons for Remote Australia Economic policy and practice, rather than a single focus on subsidies, 1 welfare and ¡®services¡¯, must be at the heart of policy on remote Australia. Government needs to do more than set macro-economic conditions ¨C it 2 needs to be an active partner in business/livelihood with community and private sector. Agglomeration, regional integration and regional connectivity are keys 3 to an innovative response. 30
- 31. Lessons for Remote Australia Economic policy and practice, rather than a single focus on subsidies, 1 welfare and ¡®services¡¯, must be at the heart of policy on remote Australia. Government needs to do more than set macro-economic conditions ¨C it 2 needs to be an active partner in business/livelihood with community and private sector. Agglomeration, regional integration and regional connectivity are keys 3 to an innovative response. Place centred governance is a precursor to place based initiatives where 4 place centred relates to mandate rather than location. 31
- 32. Lessons for Remote Australia Economic policy and practice, rather than a single focus on subsidies, 1 welfare and ¡®services¡¯, must be at the heart of policy on remote Australia. Government needs to do more than set macro-economic conditions ¨C it 2 needs to be an active partner in business/livelihood with community and private sector. Agglomeration, regional integration and regional connectivity are keys 3 to an innovative response. Place centred governance is a precursor to place based initiatives where 4 place centred relates to mandate rather than location. Government could stimulate capacity in remote Australia through micro- 5 economic reform including adopting more innovative regional and procurement policies 32
- 33. Lessons from Remote Australia It is not clear who, if anyone, is setting the priorities for remote Australia 1 or what those priorities are. 33
- 34. Lessons from Remote Australia It is not clear who, if anyone, is setting the priorities for remote Australia 1 or what those priorities are. Three tiers of government and a series of ad hoc regional arrangements 2 appear to be incapable of resolving both the priorities and the contests that need to take place around these arrangements. 34
- 35. Lessons from Remote Australia It is not clear who, if anyone, is setting the priorities for remote Australia 1 or what those priorities are. Three tiers of government and a series of ad hoc regional arrangements 2 appear to be incapable of resolving both the priorities and the contests that need to take place around these arrangements. The structure and configuration of institutions across remote Australia 3 are largely not ¡®custom built¡¯ or fit for their particular purpose. 35
- 36. Lessons from Remote Australia It is not clear who, if anyone, is setting the priorities for remote Australia 1 or what those priorities are. Three tiers of government and a series of ad hoc regional arrangements 2 appear to be incapable of resolving both the priorities and the contests that need to take place around these arrangements. The structure and configuration of institutions across remote Australia 3 are largely not ¡®custom built¡¯ or fit for their particular purpose. Consideration of economic circumstances is crucial in establishing 4 priorities in remote Australia. The private sector has been more successful at working through these issues than government. 36
- 37. Lessons from Remote Australia It is not clear who, if anyone, is setting the priorities for remote Australia 1 or what those priorities are. Three tiers of government and a series of ad hoc regional arrangements 2 appear to be incapable of resolving both the priorities and the contests that need to take place around these arrangements. The structure and configuration of institutions across remote Australia 3 are largely not ¡®custom built¡¯ or fit for their particular purpose. Consideration of economic circumstances is crucial in establishing 4 priorities in remote Australia. The private sector has been more successful at working through these issues than government. 5 Failure to innovate is most marked in the public sector. 37
- 38. Lessons from Remote Australia It is not clear who, if anyone, is setting the priorities for remote Australia 1 or what those priorities are. Three tiers of government and a series of ad hoc regional arrangements 2 appear to be incapable of resolving both the priorities and the contests that need to take place around these arrangements. The structure and configuration of institutions across remote Australia 3 are largely not ¡®custom built¡¯ or fit for their particular purpose. Consideration of economic circumstances is crucial in establishing 4 priorities in remote Australia. The private sector has been more successful at working through these issues than government. 5 Failure to innovate is most marked in the public sector. The five things people ¡®want but don¡¯t get¡¯ contributes to discontent and 6 unhappiness. 38
- 39. Our Conclusion: Without innovative systemic change in the way governments conceive and govern remote Australia; ? there will only be ephemeral improvements that will not sustain a pattern of governance across the nation, and ? the consistency of concerns expressed across remote Australia will not diminish, and ? you will not have a say in decisions that affect you. 39
- 40. To receive a copy of the report, join the remoteFOCUS conversation at www.desertknowledgecommons.net 40