Machinery of Government

Machinery of Government (MOG) broadly refers to the structure of government agencies and
may involve structural change across the public sector. Reform to the configuration of the public
sector may occur as government strives to implement a more effective approach to the provision
of services to the community and a reduction of the unnecessary use of public resources.

The Commissioner provides advice to the Government on appropriate MOG changes to achieve
and maintain operational responsiveness and flexibility.
The Commission supports the Commissioner to undertake the complex task of leading the MOG
process, provides advice, and supports agencies and interim CEOs as they transition to new
arrangements.

It is important to understand the composition of the Western Australian public sector as this
exists under the Public Sector Management Act 1994 (PSM Act).
 Public service departments – primarily responsible for providing policy advice and
administrative support to its minister. Employees in a department are part of the ‘public
service’. Public service departments are established, divided, abolished and renamed under
s. 35 of the PSM Act by the Governor on the recommendation of the Public Sector
Commissioner.
 SES organisations – established under a written law to perform specific statutory
functions, generally responsible through a board to the minister. SES organisations are
specified in Schedule 2 of the PSM Act. Chief executives and members of the senior
executive service employed within a SES organisation are part of the ‘public service’. Other
employees are considered to be part of the general ‘public sector’.
 Non-SES organisations – like SES organisations, are established under a written law to
perform specific statutory functions, generally responsible through a board to the minister.
All employees are considered to be part of the general ‘public sector’.
 Other organisations – the remaining organisations constituted by law to undertake specific
public functions. They tend to operate somewhat at arm’s length from their minister and
Government and in a commercial/semi-commercial environment. Organisations in Schedule
1 of the PSM Act are not considered to be part of the public sector for the purposes of that
Act.
 Independent offices – offices or agencies that, by having a direct reporting relationship to
Parliament, operate at distance from the government of the day. The office holder is
generally appointed by the Governor and supported in his or her operations by a
department or other non-SES organisation. Examples include the Office of the Auditor
General, Public Sector Commission and the Corruption and Crime Commission.
The types of MOG changes fall into the following broad categories:
 structural changes made under s. 35(1) of the PSM Act involving the creation, division,
amalgamation, abolition or designation of departments
 structural changes involving the creation, amalgamation or abolition of statutory authorities
(which for PSMA purposes will fall within one of the categories of Schedule 1, Schedule 2
SES or non-SES entities)
 administrative transfers whereby one or more functions (often including staff) from an entity
are transferred to another entity
 change in the status of an entity (e.g. a Schedule 2 SES organisation becomes a
department)
 creation or abolition of entities within a larger entity (e.g. a sub-department – which is a term
used in the Financial Management Act 2006 but not in the PSMA)
 creation or abolition of a statutory office, post or position (e.g. the Commissioner for
Children and Young People; Commissioner of Titles)
Machinery of government - guidance and information

Machinery of government refers to the structures of government and how they work.

System-design ToolkitOur system-design toolkit for organising around shared problems is now
available. This toolkit organises and presents a range of models to give those grappling with cross-
agency problems an easy way to find the types of solution that might be most appropriate.

Machinery of government refers to the governance and structures of government and how they
work. It includes the changing set of organisations within government, their functions and
governance arrangements, and how they work together to deliver results for Ministers and the
public. Traditionally, changes to the machinery of government have been understood as structural
changes (requiring legislation or Orders in Council to affect). In this guidance we are taking a wider
view of the term and now include system-design changes that are non-structural in nature as well.

The State Services Commissioner is responsible for reviewing the governance and structures of
government and providing advice on proposed changes. The State Services Commission should be
consulted on all proposed machinery of government/system-design changes early in the process.

The following guidance and information has been developed by SSC to assist public servants and
other employees in the state services navigate the process of developing advice on machinery of
government and implementing change.

Contact us at mog@ssc.govt.nz with any comments, questions, suggestions or if you’d like to be kept
informed of any updates.

Introduction to Machinery of Government Process Guides Shared Problems Organisational Forms