Maria Maley
Biographic Data
| ID | 4373068 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Maria Maley |
| GIVEN NAMES | Maria |
| FAMILY NAME | Maley |
| SIGNATURE | MALEY M |
| AFFILIATIONS | Australian National University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-4555-5352 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 20 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 124 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 20 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2000 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Robodebt and the limits of learning
Toxic Parliaments
This open access book examines the ways in which Westminster parliamentary systems have dealt with problems of violence and harassment in the workplace
Insiders and Outsiders
While the idea of a gender-sensitive parliament is over 20 years old (Childs & Palmieri, 2023), institutional reforms in the name of gender equality have been slow to materialise around the world. Where change has occurred, it appears to have been catalysed by a limited range of—sometimes confluent—factors including the public airing of allegations of sexual misconduct in the #MeToo era, the increasing salience of gender-sensitive parliament inte…
Cabinetisation or a Westminster solution? Understanding the employment of public servants in Australian ministers’ offices
This article tracks the proportion of Australian ministerial advisory staff over time who are drawn from the public service. Using a mix of parliamentary and employment data, biographical data and interviews (1984‐2018), the paper tests if there has been a dramatic decline in the number of public servants in ministers' offices, and if the Australian ministerial office is evolving towards the cabinet ministeriel model found in Napoleonic countries…
Parliamentary Experience in Australian Ministerial Careers 1996–2007
The study contributes the first detailed exploration of parliamentary experience in Australian ministerial careers. It examines how a dimension of parliamentary experience — holding the office of parliamentary committee chair — features in the careers of a single cohort of ministers and parliamentary secretaries appointed during the Coalition government 1996–2007. The study maps parliamentary experience on two dimensions and finds a typology of f…
Understanding the divergent development of the ministerial office in Australia and the UK
Large, politicised and separate ministerial offices are a feature of Australian government, while the UK ministerial office remains a hybrid unit which is part of the civil service. Using an historical institutionalist lens, and focusing on institutional factors, the article analyses why the separate partisan model evolved in Australia. It argues the Australian innovation was an historical compromise made in an unsuccessful attempt to move toward…
Temporary partisans, tagged officers or impartial professionals
There are increasing concerns that the line between political and public service roles is becoming blurred, and that political advisers may be politicizing the work of public servants. Underlying this is the fundamental value conflict between responsiveness and impartiality and the challenge of balancing neutral competence and responsive competence in government. In Australia and Canada the norm of impartiality is challenged by the movement of st…
The Iron Butterfly and the Political Warrior
Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and former Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s Chief of Staff Peta Credlin have experienced very different political fortunes. Once the two most powerful women in the Australian Liberal Party, Credlin’s political demise was mired in controversy, while Bishop continues to enjoy the support of her Party and the public. While there are many reasons for this, the article focuses on the gendered politics surrounding t…
Political Chronicles Commonwealth of Australia July to December 2014
The period saw some economic optimism with the release of the thirty-year\nQueensland Plan and a burgeoning LNG industry, but also much pessimism amid\ngrowing unemployment and a shift in the Newman government’s plans for asset\nprivatisation. After suffering a massive anti-government swing at the Stafford byelection\nearly in the period, the Liberal-National Party faced more public opinion\nchallenges as allegations of cronyism and conflicts of …
Political Chronicles
Although the date of the election was yet to be announced during the period of this chronicle, Tasmania has been in campaign mode for most of 2013. The government has taken the opportunity in the final months of this parliament to attempt legislation in a number of contentious areas of social reform with mixed success. Other election issues flagged to influence voter behaviour include public hospital waiting lists, the pulp mill proposal for the …
Political Chronicles
Political Chronicles
Julia Gillard’s prime ministership was under relentless pressure during the entire first half of 2013. Opinion polls did not markedly improve for her government and dissatisfaction remained pronounced with her performance as prime minister. Her ministers began to lose confidence in her stoic leadership; caucus became increasingly nervous as the election drew closer; and the media were incessantly critical of her performance, especially the metrop…
Commonwealth of Australia July to December 2012
Tasmanias ailing economy continues to lag behind other states, and the Premier hastaken steps to address this, despite a resultant impact on the state debt. Much of thedebate centred on the possibility of alternative models for GST distribution to thestates, a serious threat to Tasmania. Polling continues to favour the Liberal oppositionin the event of an election, despite a cabinet reshuffle which has relieved the Premier ofsome of her workload …
Political Chronicles
Economic matters have again dominated political activity in Tasmania to date this year.The forestry industry decline resulting from international factors and the cessation ofnative harvesting has had severe economic and political consequences, with dominantcorporate player Gunns re-organising operations and the negotiation of the InterGovernmental Agreement (IGA) dragging on to beyond numerous deadlines, with thevery real risk of failure. The sch…
Strategic Links in a Cut‐throat World
Ministerial staff relationships form part of the networks within the core executive. This article uses data from a comprehensive empirical study of Australian ministerial staff to explore advisers' horizontal relationships with each other. It finds that the interactions between Australian ministerial advisers are a key part of their role, are highly valued by ministers and public servants, and are an important element of the cabinet system. The i…
The Howard Government and Political Management
Although the distinctive values promulgated by successive Howard governments have been extensively analysed, less attention has been paid to the manner of their incorporation into policy. This article maps the ways in which policy processes were managed to achieve values-change in the Howard decade (1996-2006), focusing on the policy subsystem at the apex of government. Three case studies are investigated in detail: the development of welfare to …
Accessing e-government
The Internet is becoming more integral to governments and their modes of doing business and delivering services. This is creating a new imperative to address the digital divide. In Australia, as shown in this article, citizens who are the biggest users of government services are the least likely to be connected to the internet. What can be done to connect the unconnected? The article explores what has been learned from some of the Australian init…
Australian Ministerial Advisers and the Royal Commission on Government Administration
The role of the ministerial office was one of the key issues investigated by the Royal Commission on Australian Gvoernment Administration (RCAGA) in 1976. At the time the ministerial office was undergoing new and controversial developments. In the 25 years since the Royal Commission the new ministerial office has become a permanent and accepted part of our machinery of government. This paper reviews RCAGA’s analysis of ministerial advisers and us…
Too Many or Too Few? The Increase in Federal Ministerial Advisers 1972–1999
This paper examines recently published figures that show the increase in ministerial staff between 1972 and 1996 (Dunn 1997). A careful examination of the table in Dunn's book reveals it gives a misleading impression of the number of ministerial staff; the number of advisory staff to ministers; and the growth in advisory resources over the Hawke–Keating period. By re‐analysing the figures the paper reveals the reality of the growth in advisory st…
Conceptualising Advisers' Policy Work
The role of ministerial advisers in policy-making in Australia is a subject that has not received enough detailed attention. While advisers are often described as influential in policy-making, we do not have a full understanding of the policy roles that they play. Much research focuses on advisers' work in promoting political control through their work with departments. This paper conceptualises advisers' distinctive policy-making roles, based on…
Conceptualising Advisers' Policy Work
The role of ministerial advisers in policy-making in Australia is a subject that has not received enough detailed attention. While advisers are often described as influential in policy-making, we do not have a full understanding of the policy roles that they play. Much research focuses on advisers' work in promoting political control through their work with departments. This paper conceptualises advisers' distinctive policy-making roles, based on…
Strategic Links in a Cut‐throat World
Ministerial staff relationships form part of the networks within the core executive. This article uses data from a comprehensive empirical study of Australian ministerial staff to explore advisers' horizontal relationships with each other. It finds that the interactions between Australian ministerial advisers are a key part of their role, are highly valued by ministers and public servants, and are an important element of the cabinet system. The i…
Temporary partisans, tagged officers or impartial professionals
There are increasing concerns that the line between political and public service roles is becoming blurred, and that political advisers may be politicizing the work of public servants. Underlying this is the fundamental value conflict between responsiveness and impartiality and the challenge of balancing neutral competence and responsive competence in government. In Australia and Canada the norm of impartiality is challenged by the movement of st…
The Howard Government and Political Management
Although the distinctive values promulgated by successive Howard governments have been extensively analysed, less attention has been paid to the manner of their incorporation into policy. This article maps the ways in which policy processes were managed to achieve values-change in the Howard decade (1996-2006), focusing on the policy subsystem at the apex of government. Three case studies are investigated in detail: the development of welfare to …
Accessing e-government
The Internet is becoming more integral to governments and their modes of doing business and delivering services. This is creating a new imperative to address the digital divide. In Australia, as shown in this article, citizens who are the biggest users of government services are the least likely to be connected to the internet. What can be done to connect the unconnected? The article explores what has been learned from some of the Australian init…
Too Many or Too Few? The Increase in Federal Ministerial Advisers 1972–1999
This paper examines recently published figures that show the increase in ministerial staff between 1972 and 1996 (Dunn 1997). A careful examination of the table in Dunn's book reveals it gives a misleading impression of the number of ministerial staff; the number of advisory staff to ministers; and the growth in advisory resources over the Hawke–Keating period. By re‐analysing the figures the paper reveals the reality of the growth in advisory st…
Understanding the divergent development of the ministerial office in Australia and the UK
Large, politicised and separate ministerial offices are a feature of Australian government, while the UK ministerial office remains a hybrid unit which is part of the civil service. Using an historical institutionalist lens, and focusing on institutional factors, the article analyses why the separate partisan model evolved in Australia. It argues the Australian innovation was an historical compromise made in an unsuccessful attempt to move toward…
The Iron Butterfly and the Political Warrior
Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and former Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s Chief of Staff Peta Credlin have experienced very different political fortunes. Once the two most powerful women in the Australian Liberal Party, Credlin’s political demise was mired in controversy, while Bishop continues to enjoy the support of her Party and the public. While there are many reasons for this, the article focuses on the gendered politics surrounding t…
Insiders and Outsiders
While the idea of a gender-sensitive parliament is over 20 years old (Childs & Palmieri, 2023), institutional reforms in the name of gender equality have been slow to materialise around the world. Where change has occurred, it appears to have been catalysed by a limited range of—sometimes confluent—factors including the public airing of allegations of sexual misconduct in the #MeToo era, the increasing salience of gender-sensitive parliament inte…
Australian Ministerial Advisers and the Royal Commission on Government Administration
The role of the ministerial office was one of the key issues investigated by the Royal Commission on Australian Gvoernment Administration (RCAGA) in 1976. At the time the ministerial office was undergoing new and controversial developments. In the 25 years since the Royal Commission the new ministerial office has become a permanent and accepted part of our machinery of government. This paper reviews RCAGA’s analysis of ministerial advisers and us…
Robodebt and the limits of learning
Too Many or Too Few? The Increase in Federal Ministerial Advisers 1972–1999
This paper examines recently published figures that show the increase in ministerial staff between 1972 and 1996 (Dunn 1997). A careful examination of the table in Dunn's book reveals it gives a misleading impression of the number of ministerial staff; the number of advisory staff to ministers; and the growth in advisory resources over the Hawke–Keating period. By re‐analysing the figures the paper reveals the reality of the growth in advisory st…
Conceptualising Advisers' Policy Work
The role of ministerial advisers in policy-making in Australia is a subject that has not received enough detailed attention. While advisers are often described as influential in policy-making, we do not have a full understanding of the policy roles that they play. Much research focuses on advisers' work in promoting political control through their work with departments. This paper conceptualises advisers' distinctive policy-making roles, based on…
Australian Ministerial Advisers and the Royal Commission on Government Administration
The role of the ministerial office was one of the key issues investigated by the Royal Commission on Australian Gvoernment Administration (RCAGA) in 1976. At the time the ministerial office was undergoing new and controversial developments. In the 25 years since the Royal Commission the new ministerial office has become a permanent and accepted part of our machinery of government. This paper reviews RCAGA’s analysis of ministerial advisers and us…
Accessing e-government
The Internet is becoming more integral to governments and their modes of doing business and delivering services. This is creating a new imperative to address the digital divide. In Australia, as shown in this article, citizens who are the biggest users of government services are the least likely to be connected to the internet. What can be done to connect the unconnected? The article explores what has been learned from some of the Australian init…
The Howard Government and Political Management
Although the distinctive values promulgated by successive Howard governments have been extensively analysed, less attention has been paid to the manner of their incorporation into policy. This article maps the ways in which policy processes were managed to achieve values-change in the Howard decade (1996-2006), focusing on the policy subsystem at the apex of government. Three case studies are investigated in detail: the development of welfare to …
Strategic Links in a Cut‐throat World
Ministerial staff relationships form part of the networks within the core executive. This article uses data from a comprehensive empirical study of Australian ministerial staff to explore advisers' horizontal relationships with each other. It finds that the interactions between Australian ministerial advisers are a key part of their role, are highly valued by ministers and public servants, and are an important element of the cabinet system. The i…
Political Chronicles
Economic matters have again dominated political activity in Tasmania to date this year.The forestry industry decline resulting from international factors and the cessation ofnative harvesting has had severe economic and political consequences, with dominantcorporate player Gunns re-organising operations and the negotiation of the InterGovernmental Agreement (IGA) dragging on to beyond numerous deadlines, with thevery real risk of failure. The sch…
Political Chronicles
Julia Gillard’s prime ministership was under relentless pressure during the entire first half of 2013. Opinion polls did not markedly improve for her government and dissatisfaction remained pronounced with her performance as prime minister. Her ministers began to lose confidence in her stoic leadership; caucus became increasingly nervous as the election drew closer; and the media were incessantly critical of her performance, especially the metrop…
Commonwealth of Australia July to December 2012
Tasmanias ailing economy continues to lag behind other states, and the Premier hastaken steps to address this, despite a resultant impact on the state debt. Much of thedebate centred on the possibility of alternative models for GST distribution to thestates, a serious threat to Tasmania. Polling continues to favour the Liberal oppositionin the event of an election, despite a cabinet reshuffle which has relieved the Premier ofsome of her workload …
Political Chronicles
Although the date of the election was yet to be announced during the period of this chronicle, Tasmania has been in campaign mode for most of 2013. The government has taken the opportunity in the final months of this parliament to attempt legislation in a number of contentious areas of social reform with mixed success. Other election issues flagged to influence voter behaviour include public hospital waiting lists, the pulp mill proposal for the …
Political Chronicles
Political Chronicles Commonwealth of Australia July to December 2014
The period saw some economic optimism with the release of the thirty-year\nQueensland Plan and a burgeoning LNG industry, but also much pessimism amid\ngrowing unemployment and a shift in the Newman government’s plans for asset\nprivatisation. After suffering a massive anti-government swing at the Stafford byelection\nearly in the period, the Liberal-National Party faced more public opinion\nchallenges as allegations of cronyism and conflicts of …
Temporary partisans, tagged officers or impartial professionals
There are increasing concerns that the line between political and public service roles is becoming blurred, and that political advisers may be politicizing the work of public servants. Underlying this is the fundamental value conflict between responsiveness and impartiality and the challenge of balancing neutral competence and responsive competence in government. In Australia and Canada the norm of impartiality is challenged by the movement of st…
The Iron Butterfly and the Political Warrior
Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and former Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s Chief of Staff Peta Credlin have experienced very different political fortunes. Once the two most powerful women in the Australian Liberal Party, Credlin’s political demise was mired in controversy, while Bishop continues to enjoy the support of her Party and the public. While there are many reasons for this, the article focuses on the gendered politics surrounding t…
Parliamentary Experience in Australian Ministerial Careers 1996–2007
The study contributes the first detailed exploration of parliamentary experience in Australian ministerial careers. It examines how a dimension of parliamentary experience — holding the office of parliamentary committee chair — features in the careers of a single cohort of ministers and parliamentary secretaries appointed during the Coalition government 1996–2007. The study maps parliamentary experience on two dimensions and finds a typology of f…
Understanding the divergent development of the ministerial office in Australia and the UK
Large, politicised and separate ministerial offices are a feature of Australian government, while the UK ministerial office remains a hybrid unit which is part of the civil service. Using an historical institutionalist lens, and focusing on institutional factors, the article analyses why the separate partisan model evolved in Australia. It argues the Australian innovation was an historical compromise made in an unsuccessful attempt to move toward…
Toxic Parliaments
This open access book examines the ways in which Westminster parliamentary systems have dealt with problems of violence and harassment in the workplace
Insiders and Outsiders
While the idea of a gender-sensitive parliament is over 20 years old (Childs & Palmieri, 2023), institutional reforms in the name of gender equality have been slow to materialise around the world. Where change has occurred, it appears to have been catalysed by a limited range of—sometimes confluent—factors including the public airing of allegations of sexual misconduct in the #MeToo era, the increasing salience of gender-sensitive parliament inte…
Cabinetisation or a Westminster solution? Understanding the employment of public servants in Australian ministers’ offices
This article tracks the proportion of Australian ministerial advisory staff over time who are drawn from the public service. Using a mix of parliamentary and employment data, biographical data and interviews (1984‐2018), the paper tests if there has been a dramatic decline in the number of public servants in ministers' offices, and if the Australian ministerial office is evolving towards the cabinet ministeriel model found in Napoleonic countries…
Robodebt and the limits of learning
Political science (20 works) · Law (16 works) · Politics (14 works) · Public Administration (13 works) · Sociology (10 works) · Law (9 works) · Public Administration (9 works) · Commonwealth, Australian Politics and Federalism (8 works) · Economics (7 works) · Political Systems and Governance (7 works)