Kathrine Morgan-Wicks, Head of the State Service, message to all staff

Machinery of government changes in the State Service (10 Apr 2026)

Hello everyone

I am writing to provide an update on the machinery of government changes announced by the Premier in his State of the State address in early March. I acknowledge this is a long communication, but I want to ensure you receive all the information on the government decision, next steps and supports.

At that time, the Premier announced that the Department of State Growth would be transformed to establish Building Tasmania, including Homes Tasmania, a new entity called Tourism, Creative and Events Tasmania and a new economic development entity.

Over the last few weeks, our focus has been on engaging with staff and key stakeholders to inform and work through all the functions in the Department of State Growth.

Following this period of targeted consultation, further machinery of government changes have been finalised.

An entity to be known as Tourism, Events and Creative Tasmania will be established. This entity will incorporate Tourism Tasmania, Brand Tasmania, Events Tasmania and the visitor economy, Screen Tasmania, Arts Tasmania, the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, the Tasmanian Institute of Sport and Active Tasmania. This new entity will drive engagement in Tasmania’s cultural, visitor, sporting and events sectors.

Tourism, Events and Creative Tasmania will drive:

  • the Tasmanian brand and visitor economy
  • thriving regional communities through engagement in Tasmania’s cultural, visitor, sporting and events sectors
  • participation to excellence pathways across the arts and sport.

The Department of Premier and Cabinet will take on a number of functions, formerly delivered in the Department of State Growth. (It is important to note that the following is not an organisational structure, rather a list of new functions that the Department of Premier and Cabinet will deliver in the future). This includes:

  • Economic Development - this function will align Industry, Energy, Resources, Forest Practices Authority, Private Forests Tasmania, Mineral Resources Tasmania, and Hospitality. This function will support the Government to drive economic growth, with a core focus on partnerships with industry and business sectors.
  • Trade and Major Investment – functions within the existing Office of the Coordinator General will be broadened to include trade and major investment, advanced manufacturing and defence, Antarctic Tasmania and advanced technologies. The Trade and Major Investment function will deliver global engagement with Tasmania’s economy.
  • Community and Business Services – this function will bring together services to the community and business (such as Service Tasmania, Business Tasmania and Small Business), the creation of shared Grants Hub, and Community Services. This function will align customer services for the Tasmanian community.
  • Workforce Tasmania – this function will bring together Skills and Jobs initiatives including the key relationship with TasTAFE, and the management of the State Service. This function will realise synergies between private and public sector workforces.
  • Public Service Transformation – this function will bring together the efficiency and productivity agenda and initiatives, a shared services model, the AI agenda and digital transformation and key public sector workforce reforms. These changes will create further efficiencies and deliver system improvements, as well as fully utilising the strengths and skills within the State Service.

The Department of Premier and Cabinet will also continue to deliver Strategic Policy and Intergovernmental functions, Executive Government, Governance and Risk functions, and Corporate Services, which in the longer term, the Department of Premier and Cabinet will also deliver to Building Tasmania and Tourism, Events and Creative Tasmania.

Some functions currently in the Department of Premier and Cabinet will be realigned to other agencies, to strengthen their next phases of delivery. These are:

  • The Department for Education Children and Young People (DECYP) will incorporate:
    • The Keeping Children Safe Reform Program. As we progress towards the final operational phase (key DECYP-centred COI reforms), the Keeping Children Safe Reform Program team will transfer to DECYP and will continue to coordinate delivery of all recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry into Tasmanian Government Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings. This new alignment will strengthen delivery of phase three of the reform program, which is primarily focussed on DECYP services. As Head of the State Service, I will remain responsible for all COI recommendations impacting State Service employees’ employment and conduct obligations and advising the Premier (Employer).
    • The next phase of the Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy aligned with DECYP’s core focus on youth voice and youth partnership. DECYP will drive the next phases of implementing the strategy, including the relationship with key partner YNOT.
    • Coordinating the Frank MacDonald Memorial Prize for year 9 students in Tasmania to gain a greater understanding of Australia’s involvement in WWI and the experiences of those who served.
    • Supporting the Lifting literacy Implementation Plan as it supports a long-term vision for change in Tasmania and recognition of the importance of literacy as a foundation for lifelong learning.
  • The Department of Health (DoH) will incorporate:
    • Disability Services and Reform, strengthening alignment with outcomes from National Health Reform Agreement, changes to the NDIS, clinical governance and service delivery. The key relationship with the Office of the Disability Commissioner will also transfer to DoH.
    • The portfolio of Ageing, enabling synergies between service delivery and strategies to age well. DoH will take the lead on engagement with COTA Tasmania.
    • Commissioning of therapeutic services for victim-survivors of family and sexual violence, to align with the Family Violence Counselling and Support Service which is already located in DoH.
  • The Department of Justice will incorporate:
    • Office of Local Government recognising the critical regulatory functions of the office in administrating the Local Government Act.
    • The portfolio of Prevention of Family violence, which includes the delivery of Survivors at the Centre: Tasmania’s third Family and Sexual Violence Action Plan, and partnership with the Tasmanian Family and Sexual Violence Alliance. This will bring together activity across government, further building on Tasmania’s integrated approach to family and sexual violence.

The Climate Change Office will transition from the Department of State Growth to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania to align with the government’s agenda to deliver a sustainable Tasmania.

I acknowledge that this communication presents changes, and with any change can bring a level of uncertainty. I can assure you that we are taking the time to plan the implementation, sequence and timing of changes to get it right. I am leading this process of change, as Chair of Secretaries Board, supported by Project Director Angela Conway, along with senior representatives from all agencies.

The first stage (now) is finalising the functional view of how the Department of State Growth’s functions will flow to other agencies and the structural consequences of these functional moves on receiving agencies and entities. In this stage we are also preparing transition project documentation, establishing governance arrangements including all announced receiving agencies to oversee the changes and commence revising the models of shared services.

The next stage will be to redesign and right size the services, including mapping to new organisational structures, in alignment with budget and priority services.

The final stage will be the sequencing of the establishment of Building Tasmania and Tourism, Events and Creative Tasmania. It will also include the restructuring the Department of Premier and Cabinet, including the functions transferring in from the Department of State Growth and other functions transferring to other agencies.

All of this will take time as we continue to talk to staff and stakeholders, seek their feedback and work through the detail.

Further communications and information will be provided to affected staff over the coming weeks and months, noting that formal machinery of government changes will not be implemented prior to 1 July 2026 and will be staged from this date.

You may wish to discuss these changes with your manager, HR officer or executive member. Should you wish to seek additional supports, please consider contacting your Employee Assistance Program.

Kind regards
Kath

Kathrine Morgan-Wicks signature block
Kathrine Morgan-Wicks
Head of the State Service
Secretary, Department of Premier and Cabinet
10 Apr 2026
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