Re-cap – Parliamentary Friends of Governance & Ethics Expert Roundtable

By Charles Dane, Policy and Government Relations Advisor, Governance Institute

Earlier this month, Governance Institute hosted an expert roundtable on the future of independent advice to government for its second Parliamentary Friends of Governance & Ethics event for 2024.

Alongside group co-chairs Bridget Archer MP, David Smith MP and Zoe Daniel MP, and Governance Institute CEO Megan Motto, the roundtable was well attended by key politicians including Senator Paul Scarr, academics, political advisors, public servants and executives from several industry associations.

The roundtable discussion examined three case studies of different governance models of giving advice to Government.

Professor of Corporate Law and Interim Deputy Dean of the University of Sydney Law School, Professor Jason Harris provided his insights to the history and merits of the former Corporations and Markets Advisory Committee (CAMAC).

This led to a lengthy discussion about the lack of a future focussed corporate law body in Australia today, and how CAMAC excelled at corporate law reform and operated with barely any financial burden to government.

We then heard from CEO of Engineers Australia, Romilly Madew AO about the role of Industry Associations in providing advice to government and the importance of co-designing advice-giving institutions with government to ensure buy in and corporate knowledge is retained.

The final case study was led by CEO of E61 Institute and former Chair of the Productivity Commission Michael Brennan, who spoke about the benefits of the Productivity Commission model and how it can be used as a guide for any expert advice-giving entities in the future.

The roundtable explored the perceived independence or lack thereof of advice-giving institutions funded by government and the importance of clear governance structures to avoid any such misperceptions.

It was an insightful and thought-provoking discussion that lit up the Parliament Committee Room.

We are already looking forward to the next Parliamentary Friends of Governance & Ethics later in the year.