1. This week 10 years ago, a new Public Interest Disclosure Bill was introduced into the ACT Legislative Assembly to provide greater protection to ACT Public Service whistleblowers.
ACT Chief Minister, Katy Gallagher said the Bill adopted a best-practice framework for managing public interest disclosures (PIDs) and provided more avenues for disclosures to be made, set clear oversight responsibilities, and allowed whistleblowers to seek compensation if they suffered as a result of bringing wrongdoing to light.
“The Bill respects the strength of character required by people to make PIDs,” Ms Gallagher said.
“[It] acknowledges the resources that should be devoted to investigating and responding to PIDs, and grants all those associated with the investigation the procedural fairness they deserve.”
2. The Energy Efficiency Opportunities (EEO) program in the Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism (RET) was recognised as a “leading-edge” energy management program by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The IEA said RET’s EEO was “a model for improving energy efficiency outcomes and addressing information failures”.
“The IEA considers energy efficiency as the most cost-effective option in the short to medium term to reduce global emissions,” Executive Director of IEA, Maria van der Hoeven said.
“Australia’s EEO Program provides a leading-edge example of how best to reduce energy use and improve energy management systems.”
3. Attorney-General, Nicola Roxon announced a package of reforms to the Native Title Act 1993, 20 years after the historic Mabo decision was handed down.
Ms Roxon said the reforms aimed to ensure that a sustainable and fair native title system was maintained to create economic and social opportunities for Indigenous Australians.
The changes would improve the flexibility and scope of Indigenous Land Use Agreements; create clear requirements for good faith in negotiations; and allow parties to form agreements about historical extinguishment of native title in parks and reserves.
4. A new Tropical Data Hub was launched at James Cook University in Townsville to provide data on critical issues confronting the Australian tropics.
Minister for Science and Research, Senator Chris Evans said the Hub would allow Australian researchers to better access, store and exchange complex data, tackle global issues like environmental sustainability, and assist in predicting the flow of oil spills off the coast and better inform salvage and clean-up work.
“Building up our information store on coral bleaching and global warming could help us protect the Great Barrier Reef, a natural treasure which generates about $5 billion each year in tourism income to boost Australia’s economy,” Senator Evans said.
5. NSW Premier, Barry O’Farrell and Deputy Premier, Andrew Stoner announced the State’s electricity generating authorities would be sold to free up much-needed funds.
Mr O’Farrell said the sale of Macquarie Generation, Delta Electricity and Eraring Energy would provide billions of dollars for investment in vital infrastructure projects across NSW.
“The sale is expected to generate gross proceeds of around $3 billion, which will go toward critical road, school and hospital projects across NSW, with at least a third directed towards regional areas,” Mr O’Farrell said.
“At the same time, total state sector debt will also be reduced by this amount, releasing funds for other priority infrastructure.”
6. A national report on teacher quality warned that State and Territory Governments needed to improve reporting milestones to provide a clear picture of progress.
Deputy Chairman of the Council of Australian Governments’ Reform Council, Professor Greg Craven said the findings showed current milestones were not strong enough to assess achievement.
“[This] means we cannot properly evaluate progress in teacher quality reforms over the past two years,” Professor Craven said.
“It is in everybody’s interests, especially Australian students’, to get this right.”
