Government advertising and accountability

Government advertising or information campaigns are an accepted means by which governments inform the public about new initiatives, policies or programs. They help to advise people on how they might benefit or be affected by or what they need to do to comply with new requirements. The Commonwealth government is one of the largest national advertisers in Australia, spending in excess of $100 million per year. The problem with government advertising arises when the distinction between legitimate government advertising for public policy purposes and political advertising for partisan advantage is blurred. In other words, the problem arises when governments use taxpayer funds to gain political advantage through partisan promotion of their views or themselves, rather than to meet the genuine information needs of citizens. Concern has been expressed at various times by members and senators on all sides of politics that incumbent governments have misused taxpayer funds in this way. A number of inquiries in the last ten years have recommended reforms to the guidelines on government advertising, in order to address these concerns. None of the recommended reforms have been adopted by the government. This inquiry proposes measures to regulate government advertising. The report includes a minority report from government senators