About 15,000 public servants (5% of the total public sector workforce) could lose their jobs if the recommendations in the Commission of Audit’s report are carried out. The Commonwealth public sector employs about 257,000 people, but was criticised in the report for being too “top heavy”. The report also recommended either scrapping, merging, or reviewing 584 government agencies. While acknowledging that “by international standards, Australia has a relatively efficient and responsive public sector”, the Commission of Audit’s report states that “deficiencies in the quality of public service leadership and management were raised in a number of the consultations”.
