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From the SMH
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/rudd-takes-control-to-new-highs/2007/12/20/1\
197740472726.html
or use
http://tinyurl.com/24xepg

Rudd takes control to new highs
Phillip Coorey - Chief Political Correspondent
December 21, 2007

SOME of Australia's major institutions will have their media releases vetted
by the Rudd Government to make sure they reflect Labor's "key messages".

A directive was issued this week by the Department of Innovation, Industry,
Science and Research to about a dozen statutory agencies.

Recipients include the CSIRO, the Australian Institute of Marine Science,
the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, the Australian
Research Council, the Co-operative Research Centres and Invest Australia.
Even the Questacon science museum in Canberra was sent the directive.

It says the Prime Minister's office has instructed that "all strategic media
releases which relate to the Government's key messages" must be forwarded to
the department which will then submit them to the office of the minister,
Kim Carr.
If necessary, Senator Carr would send the release to the Prime Minister's
office. The department would contact the agency "regarding required
changes".

The directive says releases "of a more pedestrian nature" need not be vetted
but anything to do with climate change, industrial relations policy,
education and science reform, tax policy, national security and health must
be submitted. It has caused concerns within the statutory authorities which
were never subject to such conditions under the Howard government.

One former Liberal minister called the Rudd Government "control freaks".
"The CSIRO sent out a lot of things that were quite contrary to our position
on climate change. We just gritted our teeth and wore it," he said.

A Government spokesman said vetting the releases was a temporary measure
until ministerial staff were in place.
The secretary of the department, Mark Paterson, said there was nothing
unusual about the directive, especially in the early days of a new
government.

Only 30 per cent of the public service had experienced a change of
government and a number of agencies had sought "guidance on how to deal with
media release issues", he said.

Mr Paterson said statutory authorities should not be immune.
"There's a mindset with some that statutory authorities are independent for
all purposes. They're not," he said.
"They are created to undertake a particular task. That doesn't give them
free range or nor should it."...<snip>

From the ABC:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/21/2124888.htm

CSIRO told to clear media releases via PM
December 21, 2007

Government bodies like the CSIRO have been told to clear their media
releases through Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's office.

Industry Department head Mark Paterson has issued a directive for the
agencies to have significant media releases checked by the Prime Minister's
office.

Mr Paterson says it is not about controlling the message, it is about
consistency.

"It was something that we were asked for from those agencies so that they
were certain as to how to deal with media releases," he said.

"The essence of the message was that the Government wanted to ensure a
degree of consistency in message on key messages and therefore wanted
to clear key messages through the Prime Minister's office."

Mr Paterson says it is not unusual. "I at no stage, nor was the guidance
that
was given, was the word vetting used nor was the concept of vetting used,"
he said.

"This is not about constraining academic observation or comment in an
independent area, this is not about independent commentary from scientists,
this is about institutional media releases."