Grattan Institute report on policy blockages: Ken Dobinson gives a first-hand account

As we mentioned in our news service, the Grattan Institute has just released a report titled Gridlock: removing barriers to policy reform It was very critical of systemic problems in government including • The reducing of expertise and independence of the public service, • Too many ministerial advisers closely tied to political parties • Lack of control of political donations, campaign finance, lobbying, and post-politics careers. • And the absence of a federal anti-corruption commission with teeth. Is there a strong basis for their comments and what should be down about it? Ken Dobinson was a senior executive in what was then the Department of Main Roads in NSW and he joins us now.