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Governing the City State - Chief Minister and Treasury Directorate ...

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The Government, individuals, businesses, <strong>and</strong> community groups all contribute collectivelyto progress against <strong>the</strong> Canberra Plan goals. The Government has a significant role <strong>and</strong> iscommitted to leading <strong>and</strong> coordinating those collective efforts. Crucially for <strong>the</strong> ACTPS, allGovernment priorities, <strong>and</strong> <strong>Directorate</strong>s’ objectives, activities <strong>and</strong> services should contributeto meeting <strong>the</strong>se goals.Government PrioritiesGovernment priorities are defined in terms of <strong>the</strong>ir intended outcomes, <strong>and</strong> are measuredthrough performance indicators. The ACT Government’s strategic priorities are articulated ina range of documents including:• Cabinet Decisions;• broad strategic plans such as People, Place, Prosperity; <strong>the</strong> Social Plan; <strong>the</strong> Spatial Plan;<strong>and</strong> Capital Development;• whole of government strategies addressing particular issues such as Think water, actwater; Wea<strong>the</strong>ring <strong>the</strong> Change; Sustainable Transport Plan; <strong>the</strong> annualACT Infrastructure Plan; <strong>and</strong>• intergovernmental agreements such as National Partnership Agreements.To provide clearer direction to agencies about Government priorities, <strong>and</strong> respond toemerging opportunities <strong>and</strong> challenges, <strong>the</strong> Government has introduced an annualpriority-setting process. This process helps bridge <strong>the</strong> gap between long-term goals <strong>and</strong>broad strategies, <strong>and</strong> more immediate decisions <strong>and</strong> actions. The Review notes plans in placeto fur<strong>the</strong>r embed <strong>and</strong> improve this process through introduction of <strong>Directorate</strong> strategicservice delivery <strong>and</strong> asset management plans, which will inform <strong>the</strong> government of matterssuch as changes in service dem<strong>and</strong>, emerging risks, <strong>and</strong> how <strong>the</strong>se may be managed.The Government reviews <strong>and</strong> refines <strong>the</strong>se priorities each year which allows clarification <strong>and</strong>reinforcement of <strong>the</strong> priorities which agencies are expected to deliver. It also providescapacity to respond to emerging challenges <strong>and</strong> opportunities in particular policy areas.This set of priorities covers a 12 to 24 month window, intended to:• reinforce, clarify <strong>and</strong> give specific effect to <strong>the</strong> Government’s longer-term strategic plans;• streng<strong>the</strong>n integration within <strong>the</strong> hierarchy of ACT Government plans;• inform strategic <strong>and</strong> operational planning by Government agencies;• guide resource allocation through <strong>the</strong> Budget process; <strong>and</strong>• respond to emerging challenges <strong>and</strong> opportunities.Progress against <strong>the</strong>se priorities is reported to Cabinet every six months.A weakness in <strong>the</strong> current system, however, is that <strong>the</strong>se annual priorities are settled through<strong>the</strong> Cabinet process, but are not as well communicated within <strong>the</strong> ACTPS as <strong>the</strong>y need to beto serve <strong>the</strong>ir intended purpose of aligning <strong>and</strong> driving performance. While settled prioritiesare currently incorporated into <strong>Chief</strong> Executives’ performance agreements, it emerged inStrategy, Resource Allocation <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Vacant Middle Ground: 217

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