Jonathon Duniam (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Forestry and Fisheries) Share this | Hansard source

This motion falsely asserts that there is an arbitrary staff cap for Commonwealth agencies. In fact, staff settings for individual Commonwealth agencies are neither arbitrary nor fixed. Staffing levels vary according to need. There have been few years that have seen greater staff movements than 2020 as staff have been reallocated between agencies and new and temporary staff have been hired to address pressures arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Staffing levels reflect the impact of decisions by government over time and of relevant external demand pressures from time to time. The Morrison government will continue to use all appropriate government and non-government human resources to support its health and economic response to COVID-19 and to provide valued and essential services to the community.

Question agreed to.