Federal bureaucrat Graeme Head will be responsible for improving the operation and accountability of NSW's public sector, after being appointed the state's first public service commissioner.
Mr Head was on Tuesday named as the first boss of the new Public Service Commission, with Premier Barry O'Farrell saying he would be "instrumental in shaping a public service with clear and unambiguous goals, policy direction, processes and accountability".
At present Mr Head is deputy secretary of the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, but he has also been deputy director-general of the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet.
"He has as strong track record in implementing complex reforms and under his stewardship I'm sure ... that he can restore that public confidence in the public service," Mr O'Farrell told question time.
"It's our intention to make the NSW public service the best in the country, and to make it an employer of choice.
"NSW is the biggest state, and we should have the best public service."
Promised by Mr O'Farrell before the March election, the commission will be charged with reinvigorating a public sector that he says has become sullied by the political appointments of the former Labor government.
While the government has yet to introduce laws to form the commission, its job will be to improve the culture of the public service through stronger ethical standards, better recruitment practices and better service delivery.
"We want the NSW public service to not only be the best in Australia, but a world leader," Mr O'Farrell said.
"Under (Mr Head's) stewardship, I am confident we will achieve our aim of delivering a public service with a renewed focus on service delivery for the people of NSW."
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