Statistics and Mapping
Joanne Simon-Davies
Introduction
COVID-19 is the name
given (on 11 February 2020) to the disease
caused by the novel coronavirus ‘severe acute respiratory syndrome
coronavirus 2’ (SARS-CoV-2) that originated in China’s Hubei province in
December 2019. It stands for ‘coronavirus
disease 2019’ (CO-corona; VI-virus;
D-disease 2019).
The first
confirmed case in Australia was announced on 25 January 2020. On 30 January
the World Health Organization (WHO) declared
the global outbreak to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. On 27 February the Australian Prime Minister announced the activation of the Australian Health Sector Emergency Response Plan for Novel Coronavirus
(COVID-19) in anticipation of the likelihood that
the world would ‘soon enter a pandemic phase’. On 1 March the Australian Government announced
the first
COVID-19 related death in Australia, and on 2 March the
first
confirmed case in Australia of ‘community transmission’. On 11 March the
WHO declared COVID-19 to be a pandemic, the first caused by a coronavirus.
At that time there were 118,000 cases and 4,291 deaths reported globally.
As at 18 May 2020 there were more than 4.6 million cases and
just over 312,000 deaths confirmed
worldwide, and 7,060 cases and 99 deaths confirmed
in Australia.
The COVID-19 pandemic remains a constantly evolving
situation and the Australian Government’s response involves a diverse range of
activities and measures undertaken by a variety of Australian Public Service
departments and agencies.
This overview represents a snapshot of the COVID-19 related
roles and responsibilities of these departments and agencies as at mid-May 2020
and is one of a range of publications
on COVID-19 by the Parliamentary Library. Note that discussion
of portfolio agencies is limited to those with clearly defined responsibilities
or an otherwise obvious role in the Government’s COVID-19 response. While
every effort has been made to identify COVID-19 related measures, it is
possible that not all have been included. This overview should therefore not be
treated as an exhaustive list.
Whole-of-government coordination
measures
The following Parliamentary Library quick
guides, published at the end of April 2020, set out the policy and
administrative arrangements relating to national emergencies, pandemics, and
COVID-19 specifically.
COVID-related units within departments
The Australian
Government Organisations Register (AGOR) shows that a number of portfolio departments have
set up COVID-related units:
- Most units are in the Department of Infrastructure, Transport,
Regional Development and Communications, and the Department of Foreign Affairs
and Trade.
- Other units are in the Treasury, the Department of the Prime
Minister and Cabinet, and the Department of Education, Skills and Employment.
It appears AGOR is being updated weekly, so search results
may change from time to time.
National Cabinet
On 13 March 2020 the Prime Minister announced that a new
body called the National
Cabinet had been established to ensure a ‘coordinated
response across the country to the many issues that relate to the
management of the coronavirus’. It comprises the Prime Minister and the leaders
of the states/territories, and is advised by the Australian
Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC). It first
met on 15 March and meets at least weekly.
National COVID-19 Coordination Commission
On 25 March 2020 the Prime
Minister announced the formation of a new advisory body—the National COVID-19 Coordination Commission
(NCCC)—to be based in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and
comprised of leaders from the profit and non-profit sectors.
The NCCC
Executive Board of Commissioners includes Neville Power (Chair); David
Thodey (Deputy Chair); Greg Combet; Jane Halton; Paul Little; and Catherine
Tanna. They are joined by the Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister
and Cabinet, Philip Gaetjens, and the Secretary of the Department of Home
Affairs, Mike Pezzullo. The CEO is Peter Harris and Andrew N. Liveris is
Special Adviser to the Commission.
The function of the NCCC is to ‘coordinate advice to the
Australian Government on actions to anticipate and mitigate the economic and
social effects of the global coronavirus pandemic’. The
NCCC:
... is about mobilising a whole-of-society and whole-of economy
effort so we come through this unprecedented health crisis. The Commission will
assist the Government to ensure all resources are marshalled to this vital task
in a coordinated and effective manner.
The NCCC supports the decision-making committees managing
the crisis including the National Cabinet, the National Security Committee of
Cabinet and the Expenditure Review Committee of Cabinet.
The NCCC will work in tandem with the Chief Medical Officer.
Two COVID-19 initiatives report to the NCCC:
- the Coronavirus Business Liaison Unit based in the Department of
the Treasury and
- the National Coordination Mechanism based in the Department of
Home Affairs, which, in consultation with the states and territories,
coordinates whole-of-government responses to issues other than the direct
health management of COVID-19.
Key COVID-19 related measures include:
- forming
a working group to work with manufacturers ‘to ensure supply of essential
products, such as personal protection equipment, and solve supply chain issues
to keep critical goods flowing to Australian communities’, and ‘provide advice
on priority recommendations to government on future opportunities for
manufacturing in Australia’
- forming
an Industrial Relations Working Group ‘to help as many businesses as
possible to operate and keep their employees and customers safe through the
COVID-19 crisis’, and issuing a checklist to assist
businesses in developing a plan ‘to keep their workforce safe and virus
free’ and
- creating
an ‘online planning tool to help business develop a plan to keep their
workers, customers and the community safe as they reopen or increase their
activities in the weeks and months ahead’ (announced on 8 May 2020).
Agriculture,
Water and the Environment
Leadership
- Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management, David
Littleproud
- Minister for the Environment, Sussan Ley
- Minister for Resources, Water and Northern Australia, Keith Pitt
- Assistant Minister for Forestry and Fisheries, Jonathon Duniam
- Assistant Minister for Waste Reduction and Environmental
Management, Trevor Evans
- Secretary of the Department, Andrew Metcalfe
COVID-19 taskforces
- Agriculture Industry Engagement on COVID-19 Team: Senior
Agriculture Industry Engagement Officer, and supporting team of departmental
officers, established as the key liaison between the Department and
agriculture, fisheries and forestry stakeholders affected by COVID-19.
Key COVID-19 related roles
- developed a dedicated COVID-19 information hub
to simplify access to information and advice about the impacts of COVID-19 on
agriculture, trade and the environment
- dedicated staff
deployed to import assessment, bookings and inspection functions to enable
faster border clearance of imported grocery items for supermarkets, some of
which have experienced high demand during the COVID-19 pandemic
- implemented temporary
changes to visa arrangements to allow seasonal farm workers (within the
Pacific Labour Scheme, Seasonal Worker Program and working holiday makers) to continue
to work in agriculture and food processing during the pandemic to secure
Australia’s food and produce supply during COVID-19
- updating
The Manual Of Importing Country Requirements with any temporary
requirements requested by importing trading partners for additional assurances
for food and agricultural products as a result of the spread of COVID-19
- implemented temporary changes to certification requirements for imported
fresh produce, cut flowers, plants and other plant based commodities, and imported
animals, biological and animal-based goods, to allow electronic certificates
to be used and
- undertaking regular analysis of the
agricultural trade implications of COVID-19, such as price changes, the
role of imports in our food production, and changes to supply chain.
Portfolio agencies
Australian Bureau of Agricultural
and Resource Economics and Science
AgriFutures Australia
Australian Chief Veterinary Officer
Australian Fisheries Management Authority
Australian Pesticides and
Veterinary Medicines Authority
Cotton Research and Development
Corporation
Fisheries Research and Development
Corporation
National Biosecurity Committee
Parks Australia
Wine Australia
Attorney-General’s
Leadership
- Attorney-General and Minister for
Industrial Relations, Christian Porter
- Secretary of the Department, Chris Moraitis
Key COVID-19 related roles
Portfolio
agencies
Courts and tribunals
All courts and tribunals have modified practices in order to
minimise in-person attendance on court or tribunal premises, with the priority
being the health and safety of the community, and in particular, parties,
practitioners, judges and staff, and the families of all of these groups. All
court documents are to be filed electronically.
A key initiative is the COVID-19
List in the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court of
Australia. The list is dedicated to deal exclusively with urgent
parenting-related disputes that have arisen due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These
include matters relating to family violence, supervised contact, border
restrictions and medical status. It applies to urgent family law applications
filed in the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court of
Australia. The COVID-19 List commenced on 29 April 2020.
Various practice directions or updates have been issued by
the courts that provide guidance on how the courts will operate during the
COVID-19 pandemic: High Court; Federal Court; Family
Court; Federal
Circuit Court; AAT.
Industrial relations
Australian Building and
Construction Commission
- provides advice and assistance on implementing changes to the Fair
Work Act 2009 (FWA) to implement the operation of the JobKeeper wage
subsidy
- provides advice to employers and employees in the building and
construction industry with regard to leave entitlements; redundancy and termination
of employment; employee stand-downs and
- assists with implementing the Fair Work Amendment (Variation of
Enterprise Agreements) Regulations 2020, which temporarily reduce the period
for proposed variations to enterprise agreements from seven days to one.
Comcare
- published a range of guidance
and advice on working from home for employees working under the Work
Health and Safety Act 2011 (WHS Act) and Safety, Rehabilitation and
Compensation Act 1988 (SRC Act); employer and employee entitlements and
responsibilities under the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1998
(SRC Act) during COVID-19; and the mental health and wellbeing of workers.
Fair
Work Commission
- developed the Coronavirus
(COVID-19) updates & advice on
workplace entitlements and obligations
- processing applications to vary
awards and enterprise agreements to
allow for more flexibility during the COVID-19 pandemic; including varying 99
awards to provide unpaid pandemic leave and greater flexibility for annual leave
for employees in many awards and
-
administering temporary amendments to the FWA to help with
implementing the JobKeeper payment scheme.
Fair Work Ombudsman
Safe Work Australia
- promotes the National
COVID-19 Safe Workplace Principles as
agreed to by the National Cabinet and
- developing a nationally consistent work health and safety
guidance for COVID-19, in accordance with the safe workplace principles.
Regulation and reform
Australian
Financial Security Authority
- administers recent changes
to bankruptcy law to provide immediate relief to people facing financial
difficulty due to the economic impacts of the coronavirus and
-
introduced temporary
debt relief: changes came
into effect to support individuals and businesses. The measures include:
Australian Human Rights Commission
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
- published COVID-19
privacy guidance for organisations covered by the Privacy Act 1988,
including Australian Government agencies and private sector employers
- convened a National
COVID-19 Privacy Team to provide a coordinated response to personal
information handling proposals with national implications
- published freedom
of information guidance and
- signatory to the Australian and New Zealand Information Access
Commissioners’ joint
statement on COVID-19 and the duty to document, which acknowledges that ‘with
governments taking unprecedented steps to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic ...
records may be at risk as new ways of working are rapidly adopted without the
usual processes and infrastructure’.
Defence
Leadership
- Minister for Defence, Linda Reynolds
- Minister for Defence Personnel and Veterans’ Affairs, Darren
Chester
- Assistant Defence Minister, Alex Hawke
- Minister for Defence Industry, Melissa Price
- Secretary of the Department, Greg Moriarty
- Chief of the Defence Force, General Angus Campbell
COVID-19 taskforces
Defence COVID-19 Taskforce, led by Lieutenant
General John Frewen
Operation COVID-19 Assist, led by Major
General Paul Kenny
Defence Rapid Response Group, led by Chief Defence
Scientist Tanya Monro
Key COVID-19 related roles
Education, Skills and Employment
Leadership
- Minister for Education, Dan Tehan
- Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business,
Michaelia Cash
- Assistant Minister for Vocational Education, Training and
Apprenticeships, Steve Irons
- Minister Assisting the Minister for Trade and Investment Minister
for Decentralisation and Regional Education, Andrew Gee
- Secretary of the Department, Michele Bruniges
Key COVID-19 related roles
Portfolio agencies
Australian Curriculum, Assessment
and Reporting Authority
ACARA is an independent statutory authority. It is governed
by a Board comprising nominees of education ministers and national peak
non-government school bodies. Appointments to the Board are approved by the Minister
for Education. ACARA’s work is directed by the COAG Education Council and its CEO
is David de Carvalho. ACARA provides resources
for parents and carers to support home-based learning during the COVID-19
pandemic.
Australian Institute for Teaching
and School Leadership
AITSL is a Commonwealth company. The Australian Government,
as represented by the Minister for Education, is the sole company member. It is
governed by an independent Board of Directors appointed by the Minister for
Education, and its CEO is Mark Grant. AITSL provides resources
for teachers to support the delivery of online/distance teaching during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Tertiary Education Quality and
Standards Agency
TEQSA is the independent national quality assurance and
regulatory agency for higher education. It is governed by Commissioners
appointed by the Minister for Education. Its Chief Commissioner and acting CEO
is Professor Nick Saunders.
TEQSA has regulatory oversight of the higher education
sector, including regular regulatory
advice and updates on adjustments necessary to accommodate a move to online
course delivery. It oversees regulatory fee relief and changes in
cost recovery arrangements for providers, announced as part of the Higher
Education Relief Package.
Australian Skills Quality Authority
ASQA is the independent national regulator for vocational
education and training. It is governed by Commissioners, appointed by the
Governor-General, and reports to the Minister for Employment Skills. Its Chief
Commissioner and CEO is Saxon Rice. ASQA’s
work is overseen by the COAG Skills Council.
AQSA has regulatory oversight of the vocational education
and training sector, including regular regulatory advice and updates on
adjustments necessary to accommodate a move to online course delivery. It
oversees regulatory fee relief and changes in cost recovery
arrangements for providers, announced as part of the Higher
Education Relief Package.
The Australian Research Council
The ARC is responsible for reporting to the Minister for
Education on research matters, and administering the National Competitive
Grants Program (NCGP) and Excellence in Research for Australia. Its CEO is Professor
Sue Thomas. The ARC manages the NCGP, including application
deadline extensions.
Finance
Leadership
- Minister for Finance, Matthias Cormann
- Assistant Minister for Finance, Zed Seselja
- Secretary of the Department, Rosemary Huxtable
Key COVID-19 related roles
The Department of Finance is a central agency of the Australian
Government. It supports the Government’s ongoing priorities through the Budget
process and fosters leading practice through the public sector resource
management, governance and accountability frameworks. The Department of Finance
recently released procurement
policy guidance for Commonwealth government agencies undertaking
procurement in the current environment and supporting suppliers that are unable
to provide contractually agreed services due to COVID-19.
Foreign Affairs and Trade
Leadership
- Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women, Marise Payne
(member
of the National Security Committee of Cabinet, NSC)
- Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Simon Birmingham
- Assistant Minister for International Development and the Pacific,
Alex Hawke
- Minister Assisting the Minister for Trade and Investment, Andrew
Gee
- Assistant Minister for Regional Tourism and Assistant Minister
for Forestry and Fisheries, Jonathon Duniam
- Secretary of the Department, Frances Adamson
COVID taskforces
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has
established the following specific
units and taskforces to implement its COVID-19 responses:
- COVID-19 Coordination Unit—principal point for the
coordination of DFAT’s COVID-19 response; whole-of-government policy
coordination on implementing COVID-19 policy responses; facilitating the
delivery of PPE and other medical imports to Australia.
- COVID-19 Sectoral Support Taskforce—works with the
Department of Infrastructure and other agencies to deliver $1 billion of the
Government’s COVID-19 economic measures; coordination point for portfolio
agencies on funding; supporting design and delivery of targeted assistance,
principally to the tourism sector and Australian exporters.
- People Division COVID-19 Unit—coordinates advice and
support on staff welfare, staff and dependants returning temporarily from posts
to Australia; engages with the Australian Public Service Commission on
workforce matters.
- Enterprise Business Continuity—leads strategic planning
for DFAT’s enterprise level risk management and business continuity response to
COVID-19; provides operational planning and advice on risk management to
support business continuity for divisions, state/territory offices and the
overseas network.
- COVID-19 Communications Taskforce—leads and coordinates
internal communication and external communication with the public about DFAT’s
response to COVID-19.
- Office of the Pacific COVID-19 Response Coordination Unit—oversees
an essential services and humanitarian corridor into the Pacific and
Timor-Leste; delivers a rapid financial package from the adapted aid program.
- COVID-19 Development Response and Recovery Team—oversees
development of a COVID-19 response and recovery strategy in line with new
development policy; manages overall development policy and communications in
response to COVID-19.
Key COVID-19 related roles
DFAT is responsible for external affairs. Those areas of
relevance to the Department’s COVID-19 response include:
- supporting the whole-of-government COVID-19 response through
foreign, trade, investment, tourism and development policy
- working
with the Department of Health and other government departments to provide
information for Australians considering overseas travel and for Australians
overseas when considering whether to return home
- providing consular
assistance, including assisting Australian
citizens and permanent residents overseas return to Australia. This has included:
- facilitating
commercial flights from Peru, Argentina and South Africa, and working with
relevant governments to support Australians overcome border closures and
internal restrictions to ‘travel internally to
major airports and gain the necessary flight approvals and airport clearances
in locations where Australian airlines do not typically fly’. Australians
caught on cruise ships have also been helped to repatriate. In the weeks
leading up to 9 April, 280,000 Australians had returned from overseas
- providing
exemptions where appropriate—for example, Pacific Islanders returning home are
exempt from Australia’s travel ban on non-citizens and non-residents, and
additional health screening for passengers flying to the Pacific has been put
in place.
- providing support for diplomatic staff, including recall
of vulnerable or non-essential staff from diplomatic missions and posts
- working with the Department of Health to communicate
with the WHO
- helping to secure
freight access for Australian exports and providing finance
for export businesses affected by COVID-19 and
- coordinating Australia’s support for the
pandemic response in the region, including assistance with testing and
laboratory diagnosis, the provision of PPE for health care workers and medical
supplies and equipment, risk communication strategies and national response
planning and budgeting. Australia, along with New Zealand, is funding the WHO
Pacific regional coronavirus response plan (providing access to medical and
technical advice on infection prevention and control, and clinical management).
It is also supporting a range of health and medical research on infectious disease
prevention, detection and control in the region.
Aid activities supporting the
region’s COVID-19 response
- Australia-Indonesia Partnership for Economic Development
(PROSPERA) ($145 million over five years)—providing technical advice to the
Government of Indonesia on the pandemic response, including economic
assessments, fiscal stimulus packages and non-cash vouchers for the unemployed.
- Timor-Leste Partnership for Human Development ($120 million
over five years)—health activities have been redirected to support COVID-19
preparedness and response, including social protection measures for stability
and economic stimulus, and funding for essential services for women and girls.
- Indo-Pacific Centre for Health Security ($300 million 2017–21)—supporting
Australia’s
COVID-19 development response, including work on prevention, detection and
treatment, managing $12 million in emergency funding and supporting rapid and
effective national and international outbreak responses. Examples of
programs managed by the Centre include:
- the
Pacific Infectious Disease Prevention program ($25 million, 2019–22) and
- the
ASEAN-Pacific Infectious Disease Prevention Program ($28 million, 2019–22).
Portfolio agencies
Australian Trade and Investment
Commission (Austrade)
Austrade’s website notes that it is
working closely with other government departments and industry agencies to
help Australian businesses address COVID-19 related challenges. Austrade
provides links to the Australian Government’s business support programs and
posts regular updates on markets and associated logistics. It also provides weekly
regional updates on the progression and impact of COVID-19 to support the
international education sector and other sectors as required.
An International
Freight Assistance Mechanism (IFAM) has also been established to accelerate
delivery of agricultural and fisheries exports and re-establish global supply
chains during the COVID-19 pandemic. An IFAM Co-ordinator-General has been
appointed and a network
of 15 air freight service providers established to deliver regular freight
services in the absence of commercial passenger flights.
Austrade is also working with the Zoo and Aquarium
Association and state and territory tourism organisations to implement
grants to zoos and aquariums towards animal welfare operating costs during
the COVID-19 crisis.
Australian Centre for International
Agricultural Research
ACIAR is providing new
funding to support research led by ACIAR Alumni across the Indo-Pacific:
The Alumni Research
Support Facility is a one-off activity that will provide up to AUD
$20,000 for small research activities that build resilience and respond to the
emerging challenges that COVID-19 has placed on agricultural systems in our
partner countries.
...
We expect around 30 projects
will receive funding in the first round, with research proposals that are able
to be implemented in a 12-month period. Cross-disciplinary proposals are highly
encouraged.
The Research Support Facility
is designed to be reflexive to the global pandemic response and seeks to
support initiatives that build resilience and respond to the emerging
challenges that COVID-19 has placed on agricultural systems in our partner
countries.
Health
Leadership
- Minister for Health, Greg Hunt
- Minister for Youth, Sport, Aged Care and Senior Australians,
Richard Colbeck
- Minister for Regional Health, Regional Communications and Local
Government, Mark Coulton
- A/g Secretary of the Department, Caroline Edwards
Key COVID-19 related roles
While the Commonwealth has responsibilities in this area,
state and territory governments carry primary responsibility across a wide
range of health matters. The Australian
Health Sector Emergency Response Plan for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) guides the Australian health
sector response.
Key Commonwealth COVID-19 related roles include:
-
funding of Medicare
Benefits Schedule (MBS) services, including those provided by general
practice and medical specialists, pathology, diagnostic imaging, allied health
services such as physiotherapy, community nurses, and basic dental services for
children. New temporary
MBS telehealth items have been added to allow more health professionals to
conduct consultations via telephone or videoconference, to reduce the risk of
community transmission of COVID-19
- funding of the Pharmaceutical
Benefits Schedule (PBS) and the Repatriation Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
and oversight and funding of community pharmacy arrangements. Temporary
changes to medicines regulation have been made to ensure continued access
to PBS medicines
- supporting and regulating private health insurance, including
subsidising premiums through the private
health insurance rebate
- new
agreements with private hospitals to ensure their viability during
COVID-19, in return for use
of their services (state and territory governments can also make their own
agreements with private hospitals)
- supporting and monitoring the quality, effectiveness and
efficiency of primary health care services through Primary
Health Networks (PHN). PHNs have
received funding to identify and support private practices to act as respiratory
clinics
- subsidising aged care services, such as residential care and home
care, and regulating the aged care sector (see separate section on aged care
for more information)
- funding for health and medical research through the Medical
Research Future Fund and the National Health and Medical Research Council.
Additional funding has been announced for research
into COVID-19 vaccines and treatments
- funding veterans’ health care through the Department of Veterans’
Affairs
- funding community controlled Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander primary health care organisations. A COVID-19 health Management
Plan for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations has been
released
-
maintaining the number of medical doctors in Australia (through
Commonwealth-funded university places) and ensuring they are distributed
equitably across the country
- buying vaccines for the national immunisation program and
ensuring supplies of medicines and personal protective equipment for the National
Medical Stockpile
- regulating medicines and medical devices through the Therapeutic
Goods Administration (TGA)
- ensuring a secure supply of safe and affordable blood products
- coordinating national responses to health emergencies, including
pandemics (shared with the states and territories—see below), including the
operation of the National
Incident Room
- funding a COVID-19
national communication campaign to promote health advice and services and
- providing grants to community organisations.
On 26 April 2020 the Minister
for Health launched the Australian Government’s COVIDSafe
app for mobile phones to facilitate contact tracing by state/territory
health authorities of people exposed to COVID-19.
In conjunction with the states and territories through
national agreements and partnerships the Commonwealth shares responsibility
for:
Key COVID-related legislation
The key legislation in relation to the Commonwealth’s health
system response to COVID-19 is the Biosecurity Act
2015 and the National Health
Security Act 2007. In addition, the Department administers a wide range
of other legislation that may be relevant to COVID-19 activities.
Related portfolio responsibilities
Aged care
The Australian Government is the primary funder and
regulator of the aged care sector. The Department of Health is responsible for
the aged care portfolio.
Key COVID-19 related roles
- upskilling and supporting aged care providers to practice robust
infection control—for example, stand-by infection control teams to be deployed
if an aged care facility requires assistance with managing an COVID-19 outbreak
- easing contractual restrictions on funding for services delivered
in the community—for example, having the flexibility to cease group activities
- increased funding for aged care providers—for example, additional
funding to services that provide meals to people in the community
-
temporary delay in introducing new reforms and programs—for
example, the introduction of payment administration changes for home care
packages has been delayed
- cross-portfolio arrangement to ease international student visa
working arrangements within aged care, so they can work additional hours
- coordinating with state and territory governments in the event of
an outbreak
-
developing and making available communication material and
resources for older people—for example, Coronavirus
(COVID-19) advice for older people
- funding grants—for example, the Commonwealth
Home Support Programme (CHSP)—emergency support for COVID-19 and
- introducing telephone options to support older people—for
example, establishing a dedicated telephone line.
The role of the Aged
Care Quality and Safety Commission in responding to COVID-19 includes the provision
of education and practical tools, and managing complaints.
Sport
The Department of Health is responsible for administering the sports portfolio. The
key agency administering sports funding and sporting activity is the Australian
Sports Commission (which includes Sport Australia and the Australian Institute
of Sport).
Portfolio agencies
Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety
Agency
Audit schedules and processes for ARPANSA’s Australian
Clinical Dosimetry Service have been adjusted with increased focus on
remote auditing and prioritising urgent hospital requests for audits of
radiotherapy machines.
Food Standards Australia New Zealand
FSANZ has been liaising with the Department of Health, the Department
of Agriculture, state and territory health authorities, and international counterparts
to provide the most up-to-date advice
for food businesses, charities, groups and volunteers donating food, and for
consumers during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Therapeutic Goods Administration
The TGA has developed and published new
minimum technical requirements for domestically manufactured ventilators to
ensure ventilators are suitable for supply and use in Australian hospitals when
approved devices are not available during the COVID-19 emergency.
It also introduced the Therapeutic Goods
(Excluded Goods—Hand Sanitisers) Determination 2020 and guidance to enable
the production of hand sanitiser (that meets certain standards) to proceed
without requirements for TGA approval or notification, to ease supply pressures
caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Home Affairs
Leadership
Key COVID-19 related roles
Emergency Management Australia leads the National
Coordination Mechanism that was announced
on 5 March 2020. The NCM is working with relevant federal departments and
agencies and state and territory governments to ‘co-ordinate the whole of
government responses to issues outside the direct health management of
COVID-19’, including engagement with relevant sectors such as ‘education,
public safety and policing, banking, transport, food, and agriculture’. The NCM
is supported by a taskforce/Coordination
Node led by Deputy Secretary Paul Grigson and reports
to the National COVID-19 Coordination Commission established in the
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C).
The Secretary, Mike Pezzullo, sits on the National
COVID-19 Commission Executive Board with the Secretary of PM&C and
private sector and not-for-profit representatives.
The Department is administering adjustments
to visa and citizenship arrangements, including:
The Australian Border Force (ABF) is/has been involved in:
The Department’s COVID-19
and the border website outlines updates to Australia’s immigration and border
arrangements during the COVID-19 outbreak. It includes pages on: leaving Australia;
staying in
Australia; coming
to Australia; transiting
Australia; imports
and exports; citizenship;
industry
and employers; and immigration
detention.
Portfolio agencies
Australian Federal Police
The AFP is working with other federal agencies through the Covid-19
Counter Fraud Taskforce, which is ‘focused on identifying, taking action on
and preventing fraud against the COVID-19 economic stimulus measures and any
other welfare support program’, and established
Taskforce IRIS ‘to target people and organised crime entities who seek to
defraud the government’.
In April 2020 it also began deploying
up to 102 police and protective service officers to the Northern Territory
‘to help protect vulnerable and remote communities during the COVID-19
Pandemic’.
Australian Institute of Criminology
The AIC undertakes and disseminates
policy-relevant research on crime and justice to inform crime and justice
policy and practice in Australia. In response to COVID-19, the AIC has
been issuing regular
compilations of research and other resources from around the world related
to COVID-19 and crime and justice, and published its own COVID-19 related research,
such as Availability
of COVID-19 Related Products on Tor Darknet Markets and Changes in Online Gambling during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Industry,
Science, Energy and Resources
Leadership
- Minister for Industry, Science and Technology, Karen Andrews
- Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction, Angus Taylor
- Minister for Resources, Water and Northern Australia, Keith Pitt
- Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business,
Michaelia Cash
- Assistant Minister for Northern Australia, Michelle Landry
- Secretary of the Department, David Fredericks
COVID-19 taskforces
- Personal Protective Equipment Taskforce (Testing Kits, PPE
Supplies, Medical Supplies and Ventilators and Other Consumables)
- Freight and Transport
- Non-Medical PPE
- Triaging and Co-ord
- Resilience and Recovery (Advanced Manufacturing and Keystone
Industries)
- COVID Energy Recovery
- COVID Energy Preparedness and Response
- Corporate Co-ord Response
Key COVID-19 related roles
Portfolio agencies
Australian Energy Market Operator
Australian Nuclear Science and
Technology Organisation
Clean Energy Regulator
Commonwealth Scientific and
Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)
- conducting
key research as part of the rapid global response to the COVID-19 pandemic,
including establishing a biological model, analysing the SARS-CoV-2 genomic
sequence, and vaccine candidate testing and
- contributing to COVID-19-related advice provided to ministers and
key decision-makers through the RRIF.
IP Australia
National Measurement Institute
- providing
advice on standards to ensure PPE, instruments and tests used by
laboratories and frontline clinical staff have appropriate quality controls
- establishing new testing capabilities to provide validation and
accreditation to priority areas and
- supporting manufacturers to re-tool to produce urgently needed
products.
National Offshore Petroleum Safety
and Environmental Management Authority
National Offshore Petroleum Titles
Administrator
Questacon
Snowy Hydro Limited
Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and
Communications
Leadership
- Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development,
Michael McCormack
- Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts, Paul
Fletcher
- Minister for Population, Cities and Urban Infrastructure, Alan
Tudge
- Minister for Regional Health, Regional Communications and Local
Government, Mark Coulton
- Minister for Decentralisation and Regional Education, Andrew Gee
- Assistant Minister for Road Safety and Freight Transport, Scott
Buchholz
- Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister, Kevin Hogan
- Assistant Minister for Regional Development and Territories, Nola
Marino
- Secretary of the Department, Simon Atkinson
Key COVID-19 related roles
The Department’s overall COVID-19
response structure:
Portfolio agencies
Australian Communications and Media
Authority
- the Government brought forward the release of $5 million from its
Regional and Small Publishers Innovation Fund administered by ACMA. ACMA will conditionally
relax enforcement on telcos who do not comply with certain segments of the Telecommunications
Consumer Protections (TCP) Code during the COVID-19 health crisis.
National Capital Authority
- reviewing its operations on an ongoing basis in line with advice
from health officials and government (see current review
outcomes).
Australia Council
- the Australia Council’s $5
million Resilience Fund will
provide assistance to the Australian arts sector through three funding streams—Survive,
Adapt and Create.
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Postal Corporation
Civil Aviation Safety Authority
- providing support
for air operators, flight training organisations, maintenance organisations,
aerodrome operators, pilots, engineers, air traffic controllers, sports
aviation and the remotely piloted aircraft sector.
Special Broadcasting Service
Corporation
Australian Rail Track Corporation
Limited
- taking steps
in response to COVID-19 to ensure that for Australians who rely on a rail
network, their freight reaches its destination, and that essential workers can
get to their job.
NBN Co Limited
Prime Minister and Cabinet
Leadership
- Prime Minister, Scott Morrison
- Minister for Women, Marise Payne
- Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service and
Cabinet, Greg Hunt (responsibility for public service matters was temporarily
reassigned on 6 April 2020 to Ben Morton due to the COVID-19 pandemic)
- Minister for Indigenous Australians, Ken Wyatt
- Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, Ben Morton
- Secretary of the Department, Philip Gaetjens
The Department provides advice to the Prime Minister, the
Cabinet, Portfolio Ministers, and Assistant Ministers with a particular focus
on coordinating and developing policy across the Government in economic,
domestic and international issues, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
affairs, and public service stewardship.
Key COVID-19 related roles
Paused implementation planning of
APS Reform Agenda
In an open
letter to public servants on 9 April 2020 the Australian Public Service
(APS) Commissioner and the Secretary of PM&C advised:
The change that is taking place right now and the lessons of
this crisis will be fundamental to the future of the APS. We are reforming in
practice as we act to respond to COVID-19.
For this reason, together with the Secretaries Board we have
agreed to pause implementation planning of the APS reform agenda.
Pay freeze
In a media release on 9 April the Assistant Minister to the
Prime Minister and Cabinet announced the deferral
of general wage increases for Commonwealth Public Servants for six months.
The deferral of wage increases commences from 14 April and
will remain in effect for 12 months. During this period, agencies will defer
upcoming wage increases by 6 months as they fall due. This will ensure the
deferral is shared equally by all APS employees.
Assistant Minister Morton has signed a Determination under
subsection 24(3) of the Public Service Act 1999 giving effect to this
decision, taken due to the exceptional economic circumstances being faced by
Australians as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This Determination will
apply to APS agencies only.
The Assistant Minister has asked the APS Commissioner, Mr
Peter Woolcott AO, to exercise his authority under the Government’s bargaining
policy to ensure that new wage proposals approved over the next 12 months
are also consistent with the Government’s expectations of a 6 month deferral of
pay increases. The Assistant Minister has also asked the Commissioner to
write to non-APS agencies, informing them of the Government’s expectations of
them to implement a 6 month deferral as well. [emphasis added]
The minister’s media release also noted:
Last month [March 2020], the Government implemented a stay
for senior Public Servants’ salary increases and also requested a stay
for all Ministers, parliamentarians and parliamentary office holders. [emphasis
added]
Additional staff and redeployments
In a press
conference on 23 April Prime Minister Morrison stated:
PRIME MINISTER: Some 3,000 extra staff have been surged into
the Australian Taxation Office ... Some 5,000 additional staff have been surged
into Services Australia and, on top of that, another 3,000 have been redeployed
both within Services Australia and across the Australian Public Service ...
JOURNALIST: ... A point of clarification - you gave several
figures about new public servants and transfers. What is the net figure of new
people brought on staff?
PRIME MINISTER: 5,000.
JOURNALIST: Is it 8,000 or 5,000?
PRIME MINISTER: 5,000 is how many additional people have been
brought into the task and that includes with service providers. As you know,
early on, one of the first things they did with the service providers was to
lift some of the call centre staff out of, I think it was out of one of the
airlines actually, and have them move in and they started processing JobSeeker
claims, which has worked very well.
However, it is not completely clear which ‘surged’ staff are
new ‘on staff’ employees, which are employed by ‘service providers’, and which
are redeployed employees.
Portfolio agencies
Australian National Audit Office
The ANAO is monitoring
the Government’s COVID-19 response via several initiatives:
Australian Public Service
Commission
The APSC has published COVID-specific guidance
for public servants on leave arrangements and remote working, including:
National Indigenous Australians
Agency
The NIAA is overseeing Indigenous-specific program support;
food security; support for businesses and service providers servicing
Indigenous Australians; Indigenous community safety; and Indigenous employment
support (see NIAA
COVID-19 webpage):
- Travel restrictions—enacted
under the Biosecurity Act 2015 by the Health Minister
and jointly announced with the Minister for Indigenous Australians. There are restrictions on non-essential travel including service provision
and 14-day isolation requirements for anyone entering a designated area.
- Northern Territory Land Councils—$10 million
from the Aboriginals Benefit Account has been provided to the four Northern
Territory Land Councils for immediate needs and expenses associated with people
returning to homelands, people who may be required to self-isolate, and to deal
with the remote travel restrictions.
- Community Night Patrol—an
additional $10 million over two financial years has been made available to assist
in ensuring community safety, including support to providers to expand or alter
current services in relation to travel restrictions and social distancing
requirements.
- Program delivery—$23
million from the Indigenous Advancement Strategy has been provided to enhance
Indigenous social programs whose delivery is affected by COVID-19.
- Food Security—a Food
Security Working Group has been established to help ensure supply to regional
and remote Indigenous communities.
- School Nutrition Projects—an additional $5 million from the Indigenous Advancement Strategy has
been provided to expand the delivery of school nutrition projects to continue
through pupil-free days and school holidays, to accommodate the higher costs in
relation to COVID-19, and to expand the program to other vulnerable members of
remote Indigenous communities.
- Community Development Program—face-to-face activities under the program have been suspended; monthly
set payments have been provided in lieu of participation activities,
suspensions, and penalties; the rate of payment has been increased in line with
Jobseeker.
- Indigenous Business Australia—$50 million has been made available via IBA to help Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander businesses, including as loans and support services—for example,
in relation to administering JobKeeper.
- Local Indigenous Jobs Initiative—an additional $25 million through the Indigenous Advancement Strategy has
been allocated to an employment initiative targeted at regions and industries
facing labour shortfalls as a result of COVID-19.
Social Services
Leadership
- Minister for Families and Social Services, Anne Ruston
- Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, Minister
for Government Services, Stuart Robert
- Assistant Minister for Children and Families, Assistant Minister
for Northern Australia, Michelle Landry
- Assistant Minister for Community Housing, Homelessness and
Community Services, Luke Howarth
- Secretary of the Department, Kathryn Campbell
Key COVID-19 related roles
- social security and family assistance payments (including
JobSeeker Payment, the Coronavirus Supplement, and lump-sum Economic Support
Payments)
- grants to community service organisations, including for
emergency relief and financial counselling services
- mental health services
- housing and homelessness programs and
- assistance for people with disability and their carers (separate
to the National Disability Insurance Scheme, NDIS).
Portfolio agencies
Services Australia
Key COVID-19
related roles include:
- administering/delivering social security, family assistance and
veterans payments
- administering Medicare claims/rebates and
- implementing new
payment claim procedures, extended phone line hours and increased myGov
capacity.
The
Prime Minister announced an additional 5,000 staff to support service
delivery, further to the redeployments from other agencies (details of the
agencies providing staff were provided in an Answer
to a Question on Notice).
National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA)
The Agency is responsible for implementing the NDIS. Key COVID-19 related roles include:
- seeking to support the viability of disability providers and the
safety of the workforce through activities such as modifying payment
administration, providing additional funding and moving away from face-to-face
meetings
- seeking to support NDIS participants through activities such as
extending participant plans
- working with supermarkets to provide participants with home
delivery services and
- facilitating more flexible use of participant plan funding.
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission
The NDIS
Quality and Safeguards Commission is responsible for the regulatory
functions of the NDIS supports and services. Key COVID-19 related roles
include:
- requiring registered disability providers to notify the
Commission if they are unable to provide support and services
- providing training for NDIS workers (for example, infection
control) and
- managing complaints.
Treasury
Leadership
- Treasurer, Josh Frydenberg
- Assistant Minister to the Treasurer, Michael Sukkar
- Secretary to the Treasury, Steven Kennedy
Key COVID-19 related roles
Treasury is providing advice, and developing and
implementing policy responses central to the Government’s economic response to
COVID-19, including through:
- economic monitoring, analysis and advice to government about the
economic implications of COVID-19, restrictions and economic response measures
- developing the economic policy responses to COVID-19, including
providing advice on specific policies, and on the overall size and composition
of the economic support package
- developing legislation to implement the response measures for
which Treasury has responsibility, and monitoring implementation of all
response measures
-
supporting international engagement with other nations and
international organisations to enable global cooperation through this crisis
- supporting state and territory engagement, including through
regular meetings of Treasurers and National Cabinet and
- providing information on the Government’s economic response
measures, through the whole-of-government information campaign, Treasury
website, and fact sheets.
Portfolio agencies
Australian Bureau of Statistics
The ABS is Australia’s national statistical agency,
providing official statistics on a wide range of economic, social, population
and environmental matters of importance to Australia. The Australian Bureau
of Statistics Act 1975 and the Census and Statistics Act 1905 set
out the primary functions, duties and powers of the ABS. The Australian
Statistician is David Gruen.
The ABS has undertaken a range
of new work in the wake of COVID-19, providing relevant insights on
households, employment and industry to inform government, business and
community responses to the pandemic. New statistical releases will provide
information on:
- business impacts such as cash flow and turnover
- additional monthly analysis on hours worked, including reasons
for working less hours, and quarterly hours worked analysis by industry
- preliminary retail turnover data
-
interactive employment maps
- preliminary import and export data
-
COVID-related employment and health implications for households
- additional analysis of short-term overseas visitors and
international students and
-
interactive age and health conditions population maps.
‘Confidentialised’ microdata for Australian businesses will
be made available for researchers through TableBuilder so they can produce
tables, graphs and maps. The ABS website contains the
release dates of COVID-19
related publications.
Some data collections, such as Overseas Arrivals and
Departures and Retail Trade have suspended their time series estimates until
further notice. The trend estimates will be reintroduced when patterns in the
underlying behaviour of passenger travel movements/retail purchasing stabilises.
Households and businesses are encouraged to complete their surveys
online or by phone where possible. The ABS will continue to assess and
refine their approach over coming months as events unfold.
Australian Energy Regulator
The Regulator has developed and released a Statement
of Expectations for energy companies to protect householders and small
business customers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and ensure the continued safe
and reliable supply of energy to homes and businesses.
Australian Taxation Office
The ATO is responsible for managing the tax system and
administration response to COVID-19, as well as specific stimulus responses.
Examples of responses being undertaken through the ATO include:
Australian Prudential Regulation
Authority
APRA is an independent statutory authority responsible for supervising
and ensuring the prudential stability of institutions across the banking,
insurance and superannuation sectors. In response to COVID-19 it has taken a
number of specific measures to help protect the flow of credit to the economy
while ensuring the soundness of these sectors. This includes:
Reserve Bank of Australia
The Reserve Bank is responsible for the conduct of monetary
policy and for monitoring the stability of the financial sector. The RBA has
been exercising these responsibilities through:
-
lowering the target cash rate to 0.25 per cent
-
providing a $90 billion Term Funding Facility to lower the cost
of finance in the banking system
- providing liquidity to the banking sector by significantly
expanding its daily open market operations
- providing liquidity to the Australian Government bond market by
buying Australian Government securities in secondary markets and
- entering into foreign exchange swap lines with foreign central
banks to ensure the accessibility of the Australian financial sector to foreign
exchange.
Refer to the RBA’s website for more information on the RBA’s COVID-19 response.
Australian Securities and
Investment Commission
ASIC is Australia’s corporate, financial markets and
services and consumer credit regulator. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic ASIC
has also refocused its regulatory efforts, including prioritising
regulatory guidance specifically related to COVID-19.
Australian Competition and Consumer
Commission
The ACCC is responsible for the regulation of competition
and national consumer law within Australia. Its response
to the COVID-19 crisis has included:
-
issuing guidance
to small business about their rights and obligations in response to events caused
by the COVID-19 pandemic
- issuing guidance
on consumer rights, in relation to issues such as travel and event
cancellations in response to COVID-19
- monitoring and informing consumers about COVID-19 related scams
- continuing to monitor businesses’ pricing practices and drawing
attention to sectors and businesses where it considers there is excessive
pricing and
- seeking to minimise regulatory burden as much as possible.