Budget will cut childcare places, make costs soar, say Vic councils

Family Day Care services set to be slashed after changes to eligibility.

29 May, 2014

ACT Chief minister denies 16,500 APS cuts will trigger Canberra recession

Forecast for stagnation blamed on ritualistic Canberra bashing.

20 May, 2014

Paid parking permits for APS will have tickets locked to cars and zones

A bid to extract $73 million a year from public servants driving to work carries a raft of restrictions that prevent spot sharing and penalise car-pooling using different vehicles.

10 March, 2014

Canberra to build solar hub to boost renewable energy

The nation’s capital is planning to build a new “innovation precinct” to attract research and development into solar power with the goal of making Canberra a “leading city” in renewable energy.

6 March, 2014

Canberra the App reveals Capital’s undercover locations

Frustrated locals and tourists alike can now find the capital’s wealth of well-hidden resources thanks to some revealing smartphone innovation.

26 February, 2014

Canberra seeks industry know-how for light rail procurement

By Paul Hemsley Canberra’s long awaited light rail project is gaining momentum as the Capital Metro Agency has commenced a search for technical advisers to guide the project towards its procurement phase in 2015. These technical advisers will be expected to have expertise in transport planning, engineering design, light rail operations, environmental assessment, urban design, […]

17 December, 2013

Regions now in firing line for 14,500 federal job cuts

By Julian Bajkowski The Federal Government’s job cutting axe is set to fall on at least 56 Department of Human Services IT staff in Hobart, as agencies start to look beyond Canberra for forced retrenchment fodder in order to meet efficiency dividend targets. The proposed federal job losses in the state with Australia’s highest unemployment […]

6 December, 2013

Local roads and bridges facing ruin hits $11.6bn

By Julian Bajkowski If you ever thought the number of problem potholes and bumpy bridges on regional roads just seems to keep growing, you’re in good company. At least $11.6 billion in roads and bridge infrastructure maintained by cash-strapped councils across Australia are now in a poor to very poor condition according to the latest […]

14 November, 2013

Canberra light rail momentum gains as Melbourne gets new Jumbo Tram

By Paul Hemsley and Julian Bajkowski Australia’s metropolitan revival of light rail and tramways is showing no sign of slowing down soon. As the nation’s capital, Canberra, finally makes tentative progress towards installing one of the tramways conspicuously drawn into the designer city’s original masterplan by Walter Burley Griffin a century ago, Melbourne this week […]

8 November, 2013

Salary sacrifice confidence returns to government employees

By Julian Bajkowski Australia’s leading provider of public sector salary packaging services, Smartgroup Investments, believes that business and employee confidence has bounced back following the Federal Election, with government car lessees now shopping around again. At a briefing in Sydney on Monday, Smartgroup chief executive, Deven Billimoria, said inquiry levels for novated vehicle leases from […]

22 October, 2013

Abbott says federal job cuts of 12,000 will be it

By Julian Bajkowski Opposition leader Tony Abbott has sought hose down rising fears that between 20,000 and 30,000 federal public service jobs will ultimately be axed in a repeat of Howard-era mass public service sackings in Canberra, taking to national radio on the ABC to pledge that only 12,000 jobs will go. Mr Abbott told […]

5 September, 2013

Feds bitten by dentists over local government fluoridation failures

By Julian Bajkowski Australia’s official body for dentists has taken a bite out of Australia’s main political parties over what it claims is a “deafening silence” over local governments controversially removing fluoride from town water supplies against the interests of public health. The Australian Dental Association (ADA) is warning that taxpayers and the federally funded […]

5 September, 2013

Canberra on high alert for Security in Government

By Staff Writers Australia’s pre-eminent public sector security gathering is primed to attract record numbers of delegates from federal state and local agencies and industry in Canberra on Tuesday, as the annual Security in Government conference again sets out to tackle some of the most pressing issues challenging government. Having started out as a distinctly […]

12 August, 2013

Abbott warning to Public Service chief on Carbon Tax

By Julian Bajkowski Opposition leader Tony Abbott very publicly told the head of the public service, Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary Dr Ian Watt AO, that he expects to have legislation to scrap the price on carbon and an emissions trading scheme pre-written and ready to table should the Coalition win government. The […]

6 August, 2013