Critics’ Reviews

We now have three wise persons providing us with a comprehensive picture of the Australian democratic elephant….It is an ambitious work, covering citizenship, law and rights; representative and accountable government; civil society and popular participation; democracy beyond the state (Australia’s international engagement, particularly with the United Nations) and federalism….

Australian democracy is not broken. It compares favourably internationally, and has numerous strengths. The weaknesses that this book identifies nevertheless provide a starting point for a more fundamental debate on the reforms required to make democracy even stronger. It is an excellent, practical and thoughtful survey of the field. – Public Sector Informat, supplement to The Canberra Times, 12 August 2009, pp6-7

…I found Australia: The State of Democracy a succinct, highly readable and useful reference tool. It is an excellent contribution to the nation, particularly I imagine for students, journalists and politicians. For the overseas reader studying Australia it brings a wealth of material and a depth of perspective. It also adds to the global democratic picture – which is important considering that one of the aims of developing the international Audit framework in the first place was to assist newer democracies. It deserves to be widely read and discussed… – Senator the Hon Joe Ludwig, Cabinet Secretary, Special Minister of State, taken from the Launch Speech, Wednesday 14 October 2009.

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