In what is surely a public servant dummy spit for the ages,ex-FOI commissionerLeo Hardiman spoke of a culture of gaslighting,incompetence and resistance to reform that may actually wring a few drops of sympathy from anyone who’s ever waited on the other end of an FOI request.
Road warrior Leo Hardiman had to take the bus to Canberra.Shakespeare
When Hardiman quit the FOI commission in March,less than a year into the gig,he mentioned its whopping FOI request backlog and measly resources.
Turns out his budget was so tight,a frugal Hardiman was forced to catch the bus from Sydney every time he needed to visit Canberra. (Having repeatedly made that infamous trek up in the Hume in a Murrays bus,CBD really does sympathise.)
“Ridiculous was the word used,” Hardiman told senators on Tuesday. News would come nearly every day of another government cash splash (or expensive jet trip if you’re a certain Defence minister),and here was Hardiman,asking for just “a few million bucks”.
Not only were the purse strings tight,but what few staff Hardiman had were constantly diverted to obscure side tasks,he said. That included a revolving door of “process changes” that staff saw as a push by their overlords to “progress a narrative something was being done” when it wasn’t. Not to mention,“cycles of panic” that rippled down from on high related to Senate estimates hearings – or even more terrifying – fronting notorious FOI warrior SenatorRex Patrick. There was so much staff turnover,some spent most of their time onboarding newbies,Hardiman said.
Australia’s FOI regime is notoriously brutal. Take this case in 2018 when one concerned punter,requesting documents on “what happens when the Queen dies” was made to wait five years – after the Queen had actually died – only to be told the single document they’d requested was “unavailable”.
When the ex-commissioner tried to push through reform to fix things,a “flabbergasted” Hardiman said he was told not to involve himself in the running of his own commission.
Still,the suitably flustered government officials who had to follow Hardiman’s act at the hearing said they’d been “surprised” by the commissioner’s resignation. A new appointment “will be finalised in the coming months”.
Candidates must be knocking down the door.
But,as for the requests for information senators levelled at those government reps on Tuesday,it will surprise no one to hear that often the answers were “unavailable”.
Expect a response in three to five … years?
UFO NO
It seems that while our American allies have been busy overhauling their military to better scan the skies for UFOs – wait,no Unidentified Aerial Phenomena – Australia’s defence hawks have been quietly rolling their eyes.
UFOs have gone mainstream in Washington after concerned senators ordered the reformation of a once-secret branch of the Pentagon to investigate strange but apparently fairly regular sightings by pilots and radar systems that remained unexplained. National security is now the line trotted out at budget talks;tinfoil hats no longer considered adequate protection.
But,in a briefing prepared for Australia’s Senate estimates in May recentlyunder FOI (it does happen,from time to time),our own air force suggests that this flurry of research and security changes in the US may all be a waste of money.
“Air Force’s position continues to be that there is no scientific or other compelling reason to divert resources to[their] recording and investigation,” the briefing reads. Unexplained does not mean aliens,after all,it notes.
Of course,the air force admits that Australia has not actually discussed UAPs with the US. So perhaps we haven’t been clued in on the kind of “explosive” revelations told to by someone who had it told to them … by someone who apparently the alien bodies.
As to whether Australia is also on the hunt for UAPs,Defence officials say they don’t have a policy,but under standard reporting protocols,there are “no records” of such observations here in the past decade. Make of that what you will.
FROM BEERS TO BUBS
Reg Weine has stepped down as Maggie Beer’s chairman – but he’s taking up the reins at troubled baby formula maker Bubs Australia as CEO.
Weine only arrived on the Bubs board in April – just before the company’s high-drama with the former CEOKristy Carr kicked off.
Carr was booted in May,and then marshalled dissident shareholders at the formula maker for a board spill attempt (which).
On Tuesday,Bubs chairKatrina Rathie lauded the aptly named Weine as a “measured,hard-working executive who is trusted by the board to act in the best interests of our company”.
Carr could not be reached by CBD on Tuesday for her own thoughts on her successor.
GATTO GOES GREEN
CBD has confirmed that Melbourne underworld figureMick Gatto has ditched his signature Rolls-Royce for an eco-friendly EV.
Rather than a flash new Tesla,Gatto has opted for a more humble – and discreet – white Audi.
Mick Gatto in his beloved Rolls-Royce in 2016.Jason South
Word is he was tired of everyone recognising the Rolls,pesky journalists included.
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