Our mission at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) is to deliver for all Australians. Every day we work in service for the Australian people through our advice and support to the Australian Government. The excellence of our people, the culture we foster, and our unique position at the centre of government, ensure we continue to fulfil our purpose. Entering my third year as Secretary, I’m focused on the people, culture and capability of PM&C to underpin our stewardship role and responsibilities, to enable PM&C to continue to deliver in a dynamic environment.
To do this well, we must ask how our own workplace measures up. Do we reflect the diversity of the community we serve? What are we doing to support the team around us to perform at their best?
We are making progress toward these goals, as we must to improve the quality of the advice and support we provide to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. We strive for an Australian Public Service (APS) that embeds diverse views, backgrounds, abilities and perspectives to enrich the work of the whole APS. We are committed to meeting the employment targets for colleagues who identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, who live with a disability, or are from a culturally or linguistically diverse background. PM&C’s Inclusion and Diversity Strategy 2023–26 and upcoming Reconciliation Action Plan 2024–27 outlines how the department will draw on the diverse voices, skills and experience of our people to support a culture of inclusion and advance reconciliation.
Key to implementing stewardship is fostering a culture that adapts to our changing environment across the APS. At PM&C, we have the opportunity to make a positive impact every day. Nonetheless, these opportunities come with challenges, including budget pressures and time constraints. This is especially felt at PM&C where resources are tight, yet the scope of our work and complexity of policy issues continue to grow.
Importantly, the PM&C executive recognises these pressures as we manage the department’s operations and our roles and responsibilities within the APS. PM&C is a team strengthened by our comradery and care for one another. We embrace stewardship by sharing our experiences, knowledge and support to build each other up and adapt to policy challenges. By doing so, we facilitate a work environment that empowers everyone to thrive and serve the public.
Looking outward, the ASEAN–Australia Special Summit, held in Melbourne in March 2024, was a vivid demonstration of public service responsiveness, as teams from across the department and public service worked long but fruitful hours to deliver the government’s ambitious international agenda. As the Prime Minister remarked in thanking the ASEAN–Australia Special Summit Taskforce:
‘Public service is an honourable profession and this summit shows what you can achieve.’
There will be much more to achieve in the year ahead. As ever, the annual Budget sets the agenda for initiatives in which PM&C will play a key role in implementing the government’s national and international priorities.
The Future Made in Australia agenda aims to strengthen Australia’s economic resilience and security by capturing the opportunities of the net zero economy, attracting investment in new industries, and paving the way for Australia to become a renewable energy superpower. PM&C played an important role in coordinating contributions to this policy challenge.
Working for Women: A Strategy for Gender Equality is a major whole-of-government strategy which outlines the government’s vision for gender equality and details how we all have a role to play to achieve its outcomes. The Office for Women within PM&C will continue to steward the implementation of the strategy.
PM&C will advise on the government’s plan to benefit Australian families and communities, while collaborating with states and territories through National Cabinet. Again, the government’s initiatives and programs – on matters of health and housing, gender equality and violence against women, and Closing the Gap to improve life outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – will draw on resources and expertise right across PM&C.
Stewardship underpins the way we will implement these priorities. We will apply lessons from the past to tackle future tests. The judgement, excellence and collaboration of our people enables PM&C’s focus on delivering for all Australians.
Our achievements to date are a testament to the team commitment and ethos that guide PM&C. With confidence in the dedication and resilience of PM&C colleagues, and the department’s ongoing ethos to serve the Australian people with integrity and purpose, I look forward to rising to future challenges.
Statement of preparation
I, as the accountable authority of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, present the Corporate Plan 2024–25, which covers the 4 year period from 2024–25 to 2027–28, as required under paragraph 35(1)(b) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013.
Professor Glyn Davis AC
Secretary
29 August 2024