Dan Holmes

Fat cats: What public servants really make The median serves as a useful proxy for what a typical public servant earns in a given place. The average can also serve as a useful proxy for what a government spends on its workforce.

Get in loser, we're doing high school stats today.

Our definitive guide to public sector salaries across Australia The methodology, footnotes, and caveats behind how we collated and calculated the data and comparisons of the professions, pay grades, and priorities.

Emerging from my government report dungeon today with this.

I've catalogued the published salaries for every government job in Australia, and compared pay across jurisdiction, and professions. There's also a bunch of data on the top earners in every juristiction.

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GET OUT

India AI Impact Summit starts with a bang India's AI ambitions are on full display, and Australian tech policy is proving influential in the world's largest democracy.

I attempt to follow the many moving parts of the India AI Impact Summit

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Alright, @markgkenny.bsky.social , calm down😂

Universities endorse ATEC, with conditions Stakeholders support the creation of an Australian Tertiary Education Commission, provided its independence is clearly established and protected.

ATEC is one of those things that's really flown under the radar in the media. I think folks are really underestimating the scale of change this would bring to the universities sector.

That is, if the changes being pushed by most of the sector are adopted.

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Ahem

@thebigjohnnyd.bsky.social give me a job writing jokes for like three people

2/2 The word 'cabinet' still proves effective transparency dodge for APS

Estimates dominated by dog whistling at deeply uncomfortable bureaucrats.

Opposition continues to confuse committee rooms for court, APS for crims.

Privacy for public officials over public interest, government says.

Honest headlines nobody wrote about Senate estimates this week:

Machinery of government continues to confound politicians, including ministers

Government sends Minister representing who doesn't know the portfolio to avoid awkward questions.

DEWR dodges questions on secretary's dismissal DEWR officials have declined to answer questions about secretary Natalie James' sudden departure from the department.

DEWR still mum on secretary's departure.

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Last count as about $97m, but that's a much more elastic number than most people realise because of crossover work with their wider tech upgrade plan.

Bureau of Meteorology boss defends website contractors Bureau of Meteorology CEO Stuart Minchin has attributed the new website's bumpy landing to inadequate user testing, not poor consulting work.

Interesting discussion about who's holding the bag for the BoM website in estimates this week.

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APS commissioner says 'so long' to Senate estimates Departing APS commissioner Gordon de Brouwer used his last appearance to hit back at the APSC's critics in the Senate.

De Brouwer's last spin in the dock

Graph shows FOI decisions were much higher in 2016-17 than under the Albanese Government.

Crisis? What crisis?

Govt's own docs prove that there was no "swarm" of FOI requests that required Australians' FOI rights to be restricted.

No wonder govt delayed 150 days before releasing.

@skyelark.bsky.social on @thepointau.bsky.social live blog: live.thepoint.com.au/2026/02/the-...

Reposting this one from estimates yesterday. It sounds like preparations are advancing quite quickly.

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PM&C confirms former secretary James sacked Employment and Workplace Relations secretary Natalie James was removed under the same provision as former DAFF chief Adam Fennessy.

It's starting to feel like year of the long knives.

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Attorney-General's sheds light on royal commission preparations The Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion is racing toward a tight deadline. Attorney-General's offers an update.

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Senate erupts over transparency order compliance With redaction à la mode, the government claims senators are wasting public servants' time with vexatious and political orders for the production of documents.

Happy estimates to those who observe. This is the vibe going into the week.

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Bills and legislation - Parliament of Victoria Find a list of bills currently in the Parliament, and links to Victorian legislation.

Find out about the new bills introduced into Parliament this sitting week on our Bills and Legislation webpage.

Canadian sacker-tracker catalogues 22,000 public servant pileup The Canadian government has published its progress deletion of 38,000 public service positions over three years.

www.themandarin.com.au/306774-canad...

Senate estimates cheat sheet for February 2026 Expect new public servants, old grudges, and already answered questions in the first Senate estimates of 2026. Your scheduling, covered.

Estimates watchers, I have your back.

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Federal government records biggest ad spend outside COVID The federal government racked up a near-record advertising spend last year, continuing a trend of self-promotion in election years.

Bit of a sleeper issue lately, but I think this is really worth talking about.

Government to establish National Firearms Safety Council The government has agreed to set up a new national-level firearm safety body. Here's what we know so far.

Something that might have flown under the radar in the recent unscheduled return of parliament.

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Have you tried obsidian + Ollama? I've had some success with same.

Good piece. Just an observation from a not-political journo - some of the scepticism I heard from colleagues and public sector unions in the US was far more driven by belief the administration would be too shambolic to execute their plans, not that they didn't have them.

My heatwave brings all the birds to the yard

If you figure out how to turn the thermostat down, I'd be much obliged 🙏

I'd suggest it's actually a great time for said commentators to pipe down.