APS Commissioner Dr Gordon de Brouwer's statement on his agency's examination of the robodebt findings.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Hello, I'm Gordon de Brouwer, the Australian Public Service Commissioner.
00:04Today, I release the findings of the Robodet Centralised Code of Conduct Inquiry.
00:10The Robodet scheme was a failure of government.
00:14The public service takes responsibility for the part it played.
00:18As Australian Public Service Commissioner, I'm sorry.
00:22I apologise for the damage that Robodet caused to people and their families
00:27and the suffering they endured as a result.
00:31Two independent reviewers, supported by a team of investigators,
00:36have examined the actions and decisions of a small group of senior public servants
00:41that were referred to me for suspected breaches of the Australian Public Service
00:45Code of Conduct.
00:48They found that 12 people breached the Code of Conduct on 97 occasions.
00:55The breaches include lack of care and diligence, lack of honesty and integrity,
01:00as well as misleading others and failing to uphold the Australian public service values.
01:07Sanctions were recommended for each current public servant,
01:11including reprimands, fines and demotions.
01:15Breaches by former public servants range in gravity from moderate to very serious.
01:22Had those people not already resigned or retired from the public service,
01:26they would have faced similar sanctions and in some instances,
01:30termination of their employment.
01:33The former public servants that were found to have breached the Code of Conduct
01:37are required to declare that breach if they seek re-employment in the public service
01:43over the next five years.
01:46The vast majority of public servants are good people,
01:50working hard to serve you, the community, every day.
01:54Public servants made mistakes.
01:57We can't change what happened, but we can learn from it
02:01and work together to make sure those mistakes won't happen again.
02:07The public service is working hard to better deliver for the government
02:11and all Australians, build back trust and integrity and put people first.
02:18I am committed to building an Australian public service that is honest and capable,
02:23that delivers frank and professional advice
02:26and is trusted by the Australian community.