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100 Days Gone WIth No Performance Benchmarks For Ministers

Press Releases February 29 2008

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The Prime Minister must finalise and publish performance benchmarks for his ministers, so the public can judge if they are working effectively or not

“Last year the Prime Minister promised that ministers in his Government would be subject to performance benchmarks,” Family First leader Steve Fielding said today.
“These benchmarks should be set before the Rudd Government reaches the milestone of its first 100 days in office. The benchmarks should be published so the public can measure ministers’ performance.
“Mr Rudd said ‘… what I’m determined to do with the cabinet colleagues is to say well, here are some performance benchmarks in terms of how this is implemented over the next three years.’” (ABC TV 7.30 Report, 27 November 2007)
Earlier this month Senator Fielding quizzed Immigration Minister Senator Chris Evans in a Senate committee on how the benchmarks would work.  The Prime Minister confirmed on the Neil Mitchell radio show this morning that letters have been drafted setting out expectations for each minister, but they have not been finalised.
“There are a number of key benchmarks that must be in these letters,” Senator Fielding said.  “They include:
• cutting Australia’s alcohol toll to slash the $15.3 billion cost of alcohol-related crime, violence, premature death, treatment and loss of work days;
• moving the pokie plague out of suburbs, to cut problem gambler numbers;
• introducing a national container deposit scheme to improve recycling and take litter off our streets;
• introducing a national FuelWatch scheme, to save families $300 million a year in petrol costs;
• stopping outrageous bank penalty fees to ensure they only reflect costs.”