[Sandy Reith]

After thirty three years of the experimental administration of Australia’s aviation, that is removing political oversight, the one major policy change must be to restore Ministerial responsibility and govern through a traditional Department of government.

The illogical, debilitating and continual denigration of politicians has resulted in the promotion of the ‘independent’ regulator, and any number of ‘Ombudsman’ and independent Commisioners.

This barrage of negativity has even some politicians believing the narrative, for example Albo as Minister in 2009 said as he shoved the ATSB out of his Ministry, it should not be subject to politics. Raise your eyes to the heavens, but you’ll find no solace there.

This has occurred in the naive belief that a Can’tberra cohort, unhitched from Ministerial oversight, will selflessly, altruistically and efficiently administer at minimal cost. Seriously?

It’s too bad that slinging off and personal attacks, in place of pointed and rational criticism and a continual, working at it, engagement with our MPs and media people, has become the norm.

While the toxic nature of criticism is very understandable and in some individual cases like that of Glen Buckley, there are certainly instances of justification, but facts are we get the government we deserve.