The search for policy coordination: ministerial and bureaucratic perceptions of agency amalgamations in a federal parliamentary system
- 22(1), Spring 1994, p.59-73
The imperative to coordinate is strong, but the means remain contentious. One approach is to amalgemate agencies into a few large organisations, the other to encourage a diversity of policy options. Drawing on the federal amalgamations of departments in Australia since 1987, this paper reports that senior bureaucrats find more policy coordination benefits than costs from working in larger structures, while ministers report a loss of options and a risk of information overload.
Administrative Reorganisation -- Australia Bureaucracy -- Australia