Author: Dr Sarah Ball
In August 2025, I had the privilege of joining the Australian Catholic University (ACU) and the Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA) for a webinar called “How to Avoid Robodebt 2.0.” Held during Social Sciences Week, the session explored the ethical lessons of the Robodebt scandal — a chapter in Australian public administration that exposed serious failings and sparked nationwide debate.
Robodebt, which unlawfully demanded repayments from welfare recipients, highlighted deep ethical challenges in the public service. The webinar brought together voices from across government and academia to explore how such failures might be prevented in the future. I was joined by Dr Daniel Casey and Dr David Gruen AO FASSA, the Australian Statistician, who shared their perspectives on leadership, ethics, and learning from mistakes.
Dr Casey’s research, which formed the foundation of the discussion, focused on the role of leadership in shaping ethical cultures within public institutions. He examined how leaders communicate with staff about crises like Robodebt and how they foster environments where ethical reflection is encouraged.
One of those leaders was Dr Gruen, who added a powerful perspective of learning from a department not implicated in the scandal. At the Australian Bureau of Statistics, he spoke to staff about the lessons Robodebt offered, demonstrating that even in institutions untouched by controversy, there’s value in reflecting on ethical challenges elsewhere.
My contribution drew on my recent research into the ethical implications of Robodebt. In a recent paper, I argue that the scandal was more than just a few “bad apples.” It exposed systemic issues, particularly the absence of transparency, accountability, and a strong ethical framework, that allowed harm to occur to some of the most vulnerable people in our society. These failings remind us that efficiency cannot come at the expense of justice or human dignity.
Together, the webinar and the research it highlighted aimed to spark practical reflection: how can public sector leaders build organizations where ethical decision-making is front and centre? How can we ensure that lessons from Robodebt translate into real change, rather than being forgotten once the headlines fade? There were no simple answers, but some of the early findings from Ethics and Expertise in Times of Crisis about institutionalisation and the design and use of an ethical decision-making support tool were discussed.
Robodebt remains a cautionary tale. It shows that ethical lapses in public administration are never just theoretical — they have real, sometimes devastating, consequences. The conversation we had during the webinar reinforced the importance of leadership, transparency, and ongoing ethical reflection. Moving forward, it is up to public sector leaders to ensure that the mistakes of the past inform the practices of the future.