The man brought to Australia by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to digitally transform government services has blamed a public sector hostile to change and short on tech competence for IT disasters at the Australian Taxation Office and the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

In a stinging parting shot, former head of the Digital Transformation Office (DTO) Paul Shetler told The Australian Financial Review that initial government enthusiasm to change how public sector services are delivered in Australia had foundered in the face of institutional hostility and a lack of political support.