Opinion: Those who don’t think there is a problem are kidding themselves

For an administration elected on the promise of accountability and transparency, this latest integrity bombshell is a real blow, writes Jessica Marszalek.

For an administration elected on the promise of accountability and transparency, this is a blow.

Many will read Mike Summerell’s no-holds-barred assessment and be blown away by how the internals of this government are apparently functioning. Others won’t be surprised at all.

Because the culture that permeates the public service surely comes from the top.

We have a government that frequently won’t release critical information - the most recent example being the cost of the taxpayer-funded Wellcamp.

There is a failure to admit fault when mistakes are made, like last year’s WAGs scandal.

Annastacia Palaszczuk has an office who regularly doesn’t answer media questions but an army of social media staff dedicated to airbrushing her public image - never the intention of a press secretary.

Mike Summerell.

We have ministers just as shy of scrutiny and an inability to take responsibility for much of anything.

They can’t even feign ignorance that they have a cowing public service fearful of embarrassing the government because the CCC warned it 18 months ago in its investigation into the dodgy Brisbane South State Secondary College principal recruitment saga.

Anyone who doesn’t think there’s a problem is kidding themselves - especially when two people charged with guarding the integrity of government so publicly say otherwise.