Anthony Albanese’s Australian Public Service overhaul hits Home Affairs

Anthony Albanese has downsized the Home Affairs Department and created two new departments overseeing climate change and workplace relations.

Chris Bowen, left, Richard Marles, Anthony Albanese and Penny Wong at Parliament House in Canberra on Wednesday. Picture: Andrew Taylor

Anthony Albanese has downsized the Home Affairs Department and created two new departments overseeing climate change and workplace relations under a sweeping overhaul of the Australian Public Service.

The Machinery of Government changes will hand Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, who criticised the Turnbull government’s creation of the Home Affairs Department, responsibility for “criminal law enforcement and policy, including the Australian Federal Police”.

The Australian understands the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and AUSTRAC will also move under the remit of the Attorney-General’s Department.

The Home Affairs Department, led by rookie Minister Clare O’Neil, will retain its immigration, border protection and cyber security responsibilities and takeover natural disaster response and mitigation, including the National Recovery and Resilience Agency.

Clare O'Neil is sworn in as Home Affairs Minister with Governor-General David Hurley looking on in Canberra on Wednesday. Picture: Andrew Taylor

Mr Albanese on Wednesday said the APS overhaul would come into effect from July 1 to “help deliver better government for all Australians”.

Under the Albanese government’s public service revamp, a new Department of Employment and Workplace Relations will be established to “administer the government’s workplace relations, jobs, skills and training agenda”.

“A new Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water will be created to deliver the government’s job-­creating climate change and energy agenda and give Australia’s environment the protection it ­deserves,” a statement released by Mr Albanese and Public Service Minister Katy Gallagher said.

Under an administrative arrangements order signed by Governor-General David Hurley and Mr Albanese on Wednesday, which is likely to come under attack from Opposition Leader and inaugural home affairs minister Peter Dutton, “criminal justice, law enforcement policy and operations, and protective services” will be transferred from Home ­Affairs to the AGD.

The Australian understands domestic intelligence agency ASIO will be administered by both Home Affairs and the AGD, as it has been since 2017.

The Department of Home ­Affairs was established by Malcolm Turnbull in December 2017, ­encompassing the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, national security, criminal justice and emergency management functions from the AGD, the Office of Transport Security, counter-terrorism co-ordination and cyber security policy functions from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and multicultural affairs from the ­Department of Social Services.

Mr Albanese and Senator ­Gallagher also flagged name changes for the health and infrastructure departments.

“Reflecting key priorities of the government the Department of Health will be renamed the Department of Health and Aged Care and the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications will be renamed the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts,” their statement said.

Labor sources have told The Australian that Infrastructure and Transport department secretary Simon Atkinson, promoted into the role by Scott Morrison in early 2020, could be removed in a shake-up of department chiefs.

DFAT secretary Kathryn Campbell, another public service boss who worked closely with Mr Morrison, is also under pressure to keep her job.

The overhaul comes after Mr Morrison axed four departments and five public service mandarins to implement what he described as a “lean and mean” bureaucracy in December 2019.