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The highest-paid Commonwealth secretary heads, Jenny Wilkinson and Steven Kennedy.

‘Questions have to be asked’: Tribunal to review $1m bureaucrat salaries

The first review in 15 years will seek to boost public confidence in the way public servants are paid.

  • Nick Newling

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Then-newly appointed Queensland Department of Customer Services, Open Data and Small and Family Business director-general Chris Lamont and his minister Steve Minnikin early last year.

Top public servant ‘exchanged’ into ranks of another department

The top rung of Queensland’s public service has undergone only its second major internal reshuffle since the Crisafulli government’s initial overhaul in late 2024.

  • Matt Dennien
The Redland City Council CEO job pays more than $500,000.

‘They think confidential means embarrassing’: Leaks reveal fresh details of how council CEO was hired

The council recently went through a restructure that a risk expert said could undermine transparency, and has refused to release documents that would shed light on the recruitment process.

  • Julius Dennis
Scott Morrison giving evidence at the robo-debt royal commission in 2022.

Secret identities revealed, Morrison cleared of corruption in robo-debt investigation

The royal commission into robo-debt referred six people for investigation in a secret sealed chapter. Their names have finally been revealed.

  • Natassia Chrysanthos
Langbroek had accused author K.A. Ren Wyld of “glorifying terrorism” over a social media post.

Library stripped of state literary award role in fellowship fallout

Queensland’s state library will no longer run major literary awards on behalf of the government after a long-awaited review. But the future of the event is unclear.

  • Matt Dennien
“Too hard basket” … Independent MPs Nicolette Boele, Dai Le, Kate Chaney, Monique Ryan, David Pocock and Allegra Spender.

Labor has put 169 issues in the ‘too hard basket’. This obscure rule may finally force them to act

From gambling harm to financial abuse, the government has failed to respond to 169 Senate reports on time. The opposition and independents are forcing the issue.

  • Brittany Busch
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Mental Health Minister Ingrid Stitt.

‘Serious step backwards’: Furious response from mental health sector to cost-cutting bill

“This should alarm anyone who cares about transparency, accountability and public trust,” more than a dozen mental health organisations have declared in an open letter.

  • Rachel Eddie
WA Treasurer Rita Saffioti.

WA treasurer concedes $950k payout to former public service boss was ‘very, very large’

Asked how the payout would sit with the voting public in the midst of a cost-of-living and housing crisis, Rita Saffioti said: “These are the entitlements that senior public servants have.”

  • Hamish Hastie
The Redland City Council chambers and administration building on Bloomfield Street in Cleveland.

Leaked documents show council CEO won $500k gig for which she wasn’t shortlisted

Redlands chief executive Louise Rusan got the job following a six-month process that saw a recruiter quit and a councillor raise concerns over potential political influence.

  • Julius Dennis and Matt Dennien
National Anti-Corruption Commission chief Paul Brereton.

Anti-corruption commissioner to be investigated over conduct for the second time

Commissioner Paul Brereton will be investigated over conflicts of interest related to his defence ties in the latest scandal to engulf the integrity watchdog.

  • Natassia Chrysanthos