There has been a decline in the quality of ministers

The Prime Minister’s restructuring of the Australian Public Service masks a deeper problem — the declining quality of federal ministers (“Network of influence”, 7/12). Granted, Josh Frydenberg and Christian Porter are outstanding, but there must be questions about how several other ministers have performed.

Aside from two or three exceptional women, the opposition frontbench is mostly pedestrian, well short of the policy creativity and political insight of outstanding ministers such as Gareth Evans, Kim Beazley, John Button, Peter Walsh and others in the Hawke-Keating cabinets.

Australia struggles to find good policy in the complex areas of agriculture, water and drought in large part because some ministers are pale shadows of past Nationals policy heavyweights such as Doug Anthony, Ian Sinclair, Peter Nixon, Tim Fischer and John Anderson.

The internet, social media and digital technology have increased pressure for more talented ministers in democracies, but over the past decade in Australia there has been a noticeable decline. Blaming the public service for inadequacies in delivery risks dodging a serious issue. Good ministers develop fresh policy ideas, work creatively to inspire and get the best out of their departments.

Poor ministers are like those bank directors and executives who failed to inspire their organisations, to develop clever strategies, to probe carefully, to insist on high ethical standards and compliance with the law.

Philip Flood, former secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deakin, ACT

Your editorial on Scott Morrison’s first period of government covers many well-handled issues but overlooks achieving two: that unlike his predecessor he established a Coalition consistent with its traditional objectives and got an Opposition Leader who is not a unionist. These are important achievements for the future (“Morrison finds stability via incremental policy agenda”, 7/12).

As you also say, Morrison “must lead a national conversation that looks beyond the horizon, and levels with voters about the risks and necessity of becoming more innovative, competitive and productive to earn our way in the world”. You also advise that it is not necessary to be obsessed with greenhouse gas emissions. But some modification of them would help us earn our way.

The failure of business to lift investment since 2016 reflects the slowing of mining. Business has also faced uncertainty surrounding investments. Australia incurs additional costs in being one of the few countries sticking to emissions targets.

Des Moore, former deputy secretary, Treasury, South Yarra, Vic

One wishes the Prime Minister well in his intent to rationalise a bloated bureaucracy. Yet, as experience tells us, successful pruning of the public service may be a herculean task. The public service is capable of cleverly neutralising internal reform.

In Australian politics, one of the few successful attempts to reduce the bureaucratic burden, that by Campbell Newman’s Queensland government, led to electoral disaster.

John Kidd, Auchenflower, Qld

The credentials of Scott Morrison’s mandarins and confidants certainly appear impressive. The PM assures us he has chosen the best people to assist the government in delivering or implementing its policies. But Paul Kelly stresses that delivery or implementation only works if you have the right policy.

Australia faces many challenges, but energy tops the list. Formulating the right energy policy is crucial. Investment is faltering, productivity is slowing and the economy is weakening. Without a policy guaranteeing a continuous supply of cheap, reliable energy, these conditions will worsen. All the expertise in the world will be pointless unless the policy is right.

Dale Ellis, Innisfail, Qld

So many faces, so many names: the close confidantes and leadership group, the inner sanctum, the policy shapers and the top mandarins. But there’s no dissenting voice querying Scott Morrison’s judgment about his support for Snowy 2.0, a consumer of more electricity than it will produce; about his support for the redesign of nuclear submarines to run on diesel, the first of which won’t be delivered until 2035; and the lack of credible evidence for backing his predecessor’s ratification of the Paris accord.

Mandy Macmillan, Singleton, NSW