The Processes of Government in Australia
How do I learn the processes of government?
If you feel like it’s difficult to understand the processes of government (e.g. how to get funding, how legislation gets made, when something has to go to Cabinet, etc.) you aren’t alone; the workings of government are demonstrably opaque. Which makes it all the more difficult to tailor your approach: who do you go to? What should you prepare? When is the best time to engage?
Unfortunately, while you may be able to gain a high-level understanding online, many of the intricacies of government will only be understood by people who work or have worked there. That’s where relationship-building with politicians, political staff, and bureaucrats will be vital: not only can they help you with your objectives, they can illuminate the processes and offer advice in navigating the bureaucracy.
There are lots of other options, including recruiting an in-house government relations and advocacy team member, depending on your financial and resource position. Alternatively, you can speak with our government relations and charity advocacy experts at Tanck who can answer your questions about the workings of government.
ON THE TANCK BLOG | In this post, we look at how not-for-profits can work with the media to achieve an outcome as well as sharing four problems that need to be kept front of mind.
Will government relations help me get government grants, tenders or funding?
There are countless ways through which you can secure government funding, including: government grants, open or closed tender opportunities, funding programs, discretionary funds, election commitments, as well as other means. In recent years, we’ve seen Royal Commissions result in significant increases in funding for entire sectors – think about family violence in Victoria and aged care nationally. It’s worth keeping in mind that different funding opportunities may require different government relations strategies.
However, what remains a constant, is that a robust and ongoing government relations strategy will bolster your opportunities for success. This means that for the best chances of success you need to begin building relationships with government in advance of an urgent need or funding requirement. Broader engagement with different ministers, backbenchers and bureaucrats can further bolster your likelihood of success.
Strong relationships with political stakeholders can be leant on for letters of support, direct advocacy on behalf of your projects and programs, as well as invitations to otherwise closed tender opportunities.
Should I hire a grant writer?
Grant writers can provide some short-term benefits for organisations, but ultimately may have a negative impact on long-term success. While hiring a grant writer may be convenient when you are busy, grant writers can be costly, also work for your competition, and intervene in the natural processes of government to your organisation’s detriment.
One of the biggest factors for success when engaging with government are your relationships with political stakeholders — how many you have, how deep and meaningful the relationships are, and how well you have nurtured them. Grant writers cannot call on these networks that you have built. Further, preparing and submitting a grant application presents a strong opportunity to forge relationships with your local MP, government bureaucrats, ministers and political staff — engaging a grant writer prevents you from leveraging this government relations opportunity.
It’s also worth noting that the information a grant writer would need to prepare an application will come from you. The time it takes to supply this information to a grant writer is oftentimes similar to the time it takes to fill in the grant application form personally.
How do I write a grant application?
Writing a grant application can be a daunting task but a great opportunity to secure government funding if successful. Your approach to preparing the application should differ based on the audience for your application, the cost/scope of your project, and the guidelines or criteria that need to be met. It is important to note that some applications benefit from an abundance of detail, whereas others favour brevity.
Tips to be successful with grant applications and tenders
Know your audience and tailor to them: Will your application be read by a politician or a public servant? Tailoring content which speaks best to your identified audience will help you cut through the noise.
Know what your audience want: Research your audience’s key priorities by reading their communications materials. Public policy mapping and research can be the key to unlocking success in your application.
Know what the application wants: Read the grant application criteria (often available on the department website) to understand what you need to include - sometimes there’ll even be tips for extra points!
Know what you want: Make sure your asks are specific and measurable. Understand who it will be benefit, why it will benefit them, and how it will benefit them.
Know the detail of your project/program/service: It’s important to be across as much of the detail of your project as you can, especially things that politicians and departments tend to look for (think of cost, timeframes, jobs numbers, location, etc.). It can be okay if you don’t know these things, but it is always helpful to be prepared and seek further information from colleagues if you are not clear on the details.
Ask political contacts for support or advice: If appropriate, call on the relationships that you’ve built through your government relations and advocacy work to assist with your grant application. There may be appropriate actions these valuable stakeholders can take to support your application.
Don’t try to pressure or wedge the government: Avoid aggressive or overly assertive language (e.g. ‘the government must’ or ‘you need to’) so as to not alienate your audience. Governments very rarely feel the pressure that organisations try to exert, and that language can damage relationships.
Ask for feedback: If you are unsuccessful, ask for feedback to support your next application. This can also be a great opportunity to build relationships with political or government stakeholders in line with your broader government relations strategy.
ON THE TANCK BLOG | How do you best leverage relationships and engagements to help position for a competitive tender? Neil Pharaoh shares some advice.
Who should I speak to or engage with to get funding or policy change?
Best-practice government relations and charity advocacy requires direct contact with a broad base of political stakeholders. Once contact has been made, you can nurture relationships to assist in your campaign advocacy and lobbying efforts.
This includes contacting stakeholders from each of the five stakeholder groups:
The Executive: These are the Premiers, Treasurers, Ministers and Shadow Ministers who make decisions regarding government or opposition policy. Some may also sit in the Cabinet, or Expenditure Review Committee (also known as the Cabinet Budget Review Committee). They are often time-poor and require special government relations consideration to engage effectively with them.
The Politicians: These are the Members, Senators, and Candidates who make up the broader base of Parliament, often referred to as ‘backbenchers’. They are typically focused on re-election, and are easier to approach than the Executive. Tailoring communications that speak to their interests (or self-interest) is the best way to gain and hold their attention.
The Policy Departments & Agencies: The public sector makes up the operational arm of government - consisting of apolitical bureaucrats, department officials, and public servants who generate and implement public policy and program detail. Government services are typically administered by the public sector, or paid for by these departments but delivered by third parties.
The Central Agencies: The Department of Prime Minister & Cabinet (PMC), Premier and Cabinet (DPC), and Treasury (or Treasury and Finance) make up the Central Agencies. They deliver whole-of-government policy advice, budget advice, and public sector workforce leadership.
The Political Parties: Political parties are made up of the roots and branches of the particular values and ideologies present within each party. This is often where public policy begins, from simple ideas to grand ambitions, and the party of government will almost always draw from their political party to inform their choices in government decision making. Particularly in an Election cycle, the Party Offices play a greater role in pursuing particular funding or policy agendas.
Understand that stakeholders from each of these groups can either become a champion for your organisation - or your organisation’s greatest barrier. For your greatest likelihood of success, it is important to build relationships with stakeholders across each of these groups. This is where government relations comes in.
ON THE TANCK BLOG | The best advocacy campaigns know that you need a number of people around the Minister to look for lateral pressure. Read more in this blog by Tanck Co-Founder Neil Pharaoh.
How do I identify which politicians I need to speak to (and who is my local MP)?
First of all, you can identify your local Member of Parliament (MP) using government tools such as NationalMap.gov.au or the various Parliamentary or Electoral Commission websites.
Beyond that, to know who’s most relevant to speak with, you’ll need to understand what your organisation does, where it is located, what portfolio areas it operates within, and where your external influence resides. This can be a challenging task, particularly without bespoke political mapping tools or knowledge of political and bureaucratic structures.
Our government relations services are supported by powerful mapping tools which we have created. These tools identify which politicians you should speak to, how you can demonstrate your relevance to them, as well as the internal political structures, positions, committees, and factions which they fall into.
How do I know which government portfolios are important to me?
Many organisations limit themselves to a single-point of failure: their primary Minister (that is, the Minister directly responsible for their primary area of focus). The thing is, most organisations are relevant to multiple portfolio areas - even tangentially - and can broaden their base of engagement by understanding how to pivot their framing and messaging to identify secondary political stakeholders.
A simple government relations exercise to assist in this space is to open up a list of all government Ministers, and find your link with each portfolio area (no matter how small). You’ll find that you now have a broader base of politicians you can engage with, thereby increasing your likelihood of success.
How can I build a relationship with a politician?
Building a relationship with a politician requires effort, understanding, and patience. Politicians are busy people but, ultimately, their job is to represent the people and organisations relevant to their local community and/or portfolio area - so you have to demonstrate your organisation’s relevance to their role(s).
Once you have that in mind and have identified your priority politicians, letter writing is typically the most effective means of contacting a politician - even in this day and age, Australia Post is king. Sustained contact through other forms of communication - emails, social media, attendance at community events, etc. will bolster the likelihood of success.
It is important to remember that, while politicians are interested in outcomes for their area, they are also highly focussed on amplification of voice - through the media (think newspapers, radio, and television) as well as social media channels - and votes. Demonstrating to politicians how you can help them to achieve their goals will make them far more likely to meet with you and consider your requests for funding or policy change.
ON THE TANCK BLOG | Why it makes sense for everyone in your team to contribute to government relations and engagement, and some tips on how to bring them along on the journey.
How do I write a letter to a politician?
Political letter writing is a vital tool to build an effective government relations strategy. Politicians are time-poor so brevity is important - structure your writing so that the key information is easily digestible, even if the document is only skim-read.
Introduce your organisation, what you do, the problem that you seek to solve, and how you would like to work with government. Make sure to include a call-to-action (such as a meeting request or event invitation) so that your letter is not filed under ‘No Further Action’ and creates a process within the political office.
Through our collaborative approach to government relations services, Tanck works shoulder-to-shoulder with our clients to create meaningful and impactful communications collateral which will ensure you gain and hold the attention of political stakeholders.
How do I address a politician, Minister, Premier, Treasurer etc.?
Communicating with politicians requires an understanding of formal titles and protocols. Whilst it is not the end of the world if you do not understand these processes, it is an indicator of a lack of political understanding which may see your letter relegated to the bottom of the pile. Parliamentary websites often have some information to this regard, however they are typically not comprehensive. A simple rule is: if you are unsure, don’t demote - choose the most senior/formal title they have (it’s always safer to accidentally promote them than demote them).
Tanck has a comprehensive guide on how to address politicians that will help you cross your political t’s and dot your government i’s, ultimately avoiding any embarrassment.
Should I build relationships with political staff?
Government relations and advocacy can be time and resource-heavy endeavours, so it can be tempting to focus on key decision-makers like Ministers and other elected politicians as well as senior department officials and bureaucrats. It’s easy to overlook political staff.
But, it’s important to pay close attention to political staff - such has Chiefs of Staff, Policy Advisors, Media Advisors, Electorate Officers, and even Admin Officers - to build meaningful relationships with them that can pay off tenfold for you in the future. Within government, political staff do a lot of the ‘doing work’ - they organise where their boss spends their time, they collaborate closely with the department, and they can become your biggest advocates behind the scenes. Further, they’re typically far easier to get in contact with than MPs - some are often just a phone call away.
Who’s who in a political office? Understanding your government relations gatekeepers.
There are different roles in different political offices - generally, more senior politicians attract more staff (and more specialised roles). Some key staff you may encounter are:
Electorate Officers: All elected MPs across State and Federal Parliaments will have two or more Electorate Officers. This position entails supporting all the local community work that a politician is required to do and, in some cases, Parliamentary duties such as speech writing and briefing notes. They are important to engage with as they often control the politician’s diary, as well as their social media accounts.
Admin Officers/Office Managers: A position largely found in Ministerial Offices, Admin Staff and Office Managers control the politician’s diary and manage the flow of communication. A negative relationship with people in this position can become a significant block for your organisation.
Policy Advisors: Policy Advisors support Ministers in preparing, understanding, and delivering government policy. They will weigh up the pros and cons of your asks and may meet with organisations as a representative on behalf of their boss. They often write speeches and briefs, accompany their boss at events and meetings, and push public policy and other commitments through government.
Media Advisors: Media Advisors act as a conduit between their boss and the media. They look for opportunities for their boss - in the media, in incoming correspondence, and in potential policy/commitments - and seek to amplify government messaging and mitigate risk. Media Advisors play a pivotal role in getting support for your organisation.
Chiefs of Staff: Chiefs of Staff are the key managers within a political office, ensuring the appropriate function of each individual role in supporting their boss. They also are key advocates for their boss’s agenda within government, lobbying to other Chiefs of Staff and MPs.
How can I build relationships with political staff?
While there’s no central directory for political staff (or their positions/contact details), it’s typically a simple process to make contact through the main line of a political office. Be friendly and polite, advise who you are and why you are calling, and ask to speak to the relevant Advisor. While the Admin Officer may not patch you through, you can ask for their direct line or best email address.
You also can build relationships with political staff while engaging with their boss - there are myriad ways to develop this important relationship, including providing a pre-brief directly to the Advisor before an MP meeting. Advisors are often overlooked while organisations focus all their attention on the MP so engaging directly with the Advisor will put you a cut above the rest.
Demonstrate your value to the Advisor: show them how you can make their job easier and support their boss’s goals. Share information and content with them, be understanding when they can’t make immediate commitments or responses, and, importantly, respect their time.
Tanck’s experienced team comprises former political advisors, candidates, and political insiders. A core part of our government relations services is sharing what happens in the room, so your organisation can compete effectively and efficiently against the other big players in this space.
What about public servants? How can I build relationships with them?
Though the role of public servants is to implement the policies of the elected government, they typically have slightly different priorities to their political counterparts - focusing more on policy and outcomes than announcements.
Public servants are akin to technical stakeholders, often experts in the policy area within their department and typically focused on the details of delivery, outcomes, reporting and impact of government initiatives. This includes policy and legislative operation and implementation, but also the awarding of grant funding and tender funding.
Managing relationships with public servants is as important as those with MPs and ministers, but is best done in a slightly different government relations cadence and approach. Keeping key public servants briefed on your interactions with MPs who are members of government is one tactic which can keep bureaucrats ‘in the know’ ahead of a briefing request that’s come through from the minister’s office.
There’s also caretaker mode to consider. During the time between when an election is called and the new government is sworn in (having won that election!), the public service goes into stewardship of all government activities. However, this is really a sort of ‘standby mode’ where decisions that ought to be made by government will be deferred and the daily operation and delivery of government services is continued, uninterrupted.
ON THE TANCK BLOG | Neil Pharaoh explains what caretaker means for social purpose organisations, and what opportunities exist during this time.
When should I start engaging with government?
Yesterday was the best day to start engaging, today’s your next best option. By the very nature of the political cycle, there’s always more opportunities to leverage – be it another grant program, funding scheme, tender opportunity, budget or election.
It’s important to keep in mind, however, that an effective government relations plan takes time to build and implement - so your organisation should begin engaging before a need (like a public policy debate or tender opportunity) arises. If you haven’t begun engaging in time to catch an upcoming budget or election cycle, that’s okay - the government relations and advocacy work you’ve put in will likely pay off in time.
ON THE TANCK BLOG | To get the best possible outcome from our government relations and advocacy efforts, the sooner you can create a 100 day plan the better.
What is a parliamentary sitting and when does parliament sit?
A sitting of parliament is when politicians convene at the respective parliament house to debate and pass legislation, as well as for government to be held accountable to the opposition party. Depending on jurisdiction, parliament typically sits for three or four days per week, and between 15 to 20 weeks each year.
The parliamentary sitting calendar for each year is typically released between November and January, depending on the jurisdiction. They are made available on parliamentary websites, as per the links below:
ON THE TANCK BLOG | In this article, Tanck Director and Co-Founder Neil Pharaoh examines the process of getting to budget night.
What is a federal budget or state budget and when are they?
A budget is when the treasurer of a jurisdiction (it could be the Australian Federal Government or a state, territory or local government) outlines the financial position, spending and revenue for the coming financial year, as well as those immediately into the future. Budgets generally tie into election commitments, party and public policy, and any major community needs. For example, think about how the COVID-19 pandemic drastically altered government spending in a manner that was largely unplanned and unforeseen.
Budget season is an important time for the for-purpose sector because it’s where you can keep an eye out on what’s announced as there’s always potential for a grant program or funding round that may support your organisation.
While the exact date of a federal budget or state budget is decided by the government of the day, they typically fall in the second quarter of the year - with the federal budget most commonly delivered in early May, and state budgets usually following soon thereafter.
Federally, the budget is delivered by the treasurer on the Tuesday of budget week, with the opposition’s budget reply coming a few days later on the Thursday evening. The timings of the corresponding state budget deliveries vary by jurisdiction.
When should I make a budget submission?
If you want to get the most out of a federal or state budget, it’s important to get in early. While budgets usually aren’t delivered until May or June, the majority of spending is decided upon well in advance - often as early as January.
What that means is, it’s never too early to begin preparing your next budget submission. A good practice would be to begin talking to politicians immediately following the release of a budget - discuss what is good about it for your sector, and what isn’t - and work together on finding solutions. You can ask them when is most appropriate to provide a formal budget submission, keeping in mind that often it will be as early as the third or fourth quarter of a year.