Public Service Commissioner John Lloyd quits after Senate grilling

Public service commissioner John Lloyd denies his surprise resignation was driven by scrutiny of his links to the IPA.

Australian Public Service Commissioner John Lloyd speaks during Senate Estimates last month. Picture: AAP

Public Service Commissioner John Lloyd has denied his surprise resignation was driven by scrutiny of his links to the Institute of Public Affairs, insisting he had long contemplated resigning before his term expired at the end of next year.

Mr Lloyd, who turns 69 on August 2, said he had been having discussions with his family about leaving the job in August.

“I just thought that at this stage of my career and my life, I considered it was time to go,’ he said.

“I have always throughout my career taken jobs and left jobs on terms that suit me, and finishing up in August is what suits me.’’

He denied his decision was influenced by the pursuit of his links to the IPA, or the prospect of a potential inquiry by the Merit Protection Commissioner for an alleged breach of the public service code of conduct.

“No, I have not been influenced by those events,’’ he said. “They are there, they will run their course and I will defend my position quite strongly. Nothing, in my view, I did was wrong.

“There is no inquiry at the moment. If an inquiry did eventuate, I will defend my position quite strongly.’’

Asked if he had an inappropriate relationship with the IPA during his time as Public Service Commissioner, Mr Lloyd said: “I am not going to go there. I consider I discharged the job in accordance with what my requirements are under the Act”.

His term was due to expire at the end of 2019.

Community and Public Sector Union national secretary Nadine Flood welcomed Mr Lloyd’s departure, claiming he was not fit for the job.

‘In fact, during his term Mr Lloyd debased the office of the Commissioner, and repeatedly and deliberately attacked and undermined the public service,’ she said

‘The job of the APSC Commissioner is to uphold standards and integrity in the Australian Public Service, to monitor its capabilities and promote high performance. Mr Lloyd has failed in each of these functions.’

Ms Flood said ‘Mr Lloyd used his position to promote his ideological preoccupations, which has had a terrible effect on staff and on the ability of the APS to provide critical services to the public’.

‘Mr Lloyd has undermined collective bargaining and interfered with agencies’ ability to reach fair deals with their staff, meaning that thousands and thousands of people had their incomes frozen for several years – and some still do even now,’ she said.

‘He is undermining critical services to the Australian public and making working life worse and more precarious by pushing agencies towards outsourcing and labour hire.’

‘And he has brought his office into disrepute by using a public service position to help his friends at the IPA.’

However, former employment minister Eric Abetz said he regretted Mr Lloyd’s decision and and was “sorry to see him go”.

“In my time as the Public Service Minister, Mr Lloyd was highly effective in ensuring the public service was a more efficient and effective body that taxpayers could have confidence in,’’ Senator Abetz said.

“His diligent work assisted the Government to reduce the size of government while ensuring a high calibre of service to the Australian public continued to be delivered.”

Public Service chief quits after grilling

Public service commissioner John Lloyd has resigned after he faced a long grilling in Senate Estimates over his links to the Institute of Public Affairs.

Mr Lloyd faced questions over the past two weeks after he emailed the head of the Institute of Public Affairs, John Roskam, a day after he was questioned in a separate Senate estimates hearing.

His last day will be August 8.

The APSC said in a statement: “Today, John Lloyd advised the Governor-General, Sir Peter Cosgrove that he would resign from his position as APS Commissioner on 8 August, 2018”.

“We have no further comment at this point in time.”

A decision whether to investigate Mr Lloyd was delayed for four months because the government has not appointed a new Merit Protection Commissioner and the person acting in the role works for Mr Lloyd.

Acting Merit Protection Commissioner, Mark Davidson received the allegation that Mr Lloyd breached the Public Service Code of Conduct on January 11 this year, following a referral by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.

In a letter tabled in Senate estimates on May 23, Mr Davidson said his substantive role was as an employee of the Australian Public Service Commission, which Mr Lloyd leads.

Mr Davidson said he told the complainant he expected a new Merit Protection Commissioner to be appointed in the “near future” and would refer the allegation to the new person.

But Mr Davidson is still acting in the role and a new commissioner has not been appointed.

“In late March 2018 I decided that the allegation needed to be addressed,’’ he wrote.

“In light of any perception of bias arising from my substantive employment in the APSC, in April 2018, I asked a former secretary to assist me to consider whether the allegation, on its face, warranted the start of an inquiry.”

“I have not yet reached a view on whether to start an inquiry,’’ he said.

In the letter to Senate president Scott Ryan and Speaker Tony Smith, Mr Davidson said he would tell them if he decided to initiate an inquiry and, if so, would also inform them of the results.

A freedom of information request last year to the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet secretary Martin Parkinson sought emails mentioning the IPA and Mr Lloyd.

The department refused to release two emails, saying their disclosure could prejudice the conduct of an investigation of a breach, or possible breach, of the law.

The allegations against Mr Lloyd were referred by the department to the office of the Merit Protection Commissioner.

In a separate letter read to the committee, Mr Lloyd, who once led the IPA’s “work reform and productivity unit”, said he was not subject to a current inquiry.

He said he would not be seeking public interest immunity on the question of whether an inquiry was being conducted.

Mr Lloyd’s letter was read by committee chair James Paterson, who was at the IPA between 2011 and 2016.

Mr Lloyd, a former Australian Building and Construction Commissioner, was regularly attacked by the ALP and unions as “partisan”. As Public Service Commissioner, he earned $692,500 a year.