Trust in Australian public services: 2023 Annual Report

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About the Survey of Trust in Australian public services

This is the second 
annual report on on results 
of a survey of people’s 
trust in Australian public 
services

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Feedback on Australian 
public services, also known as 
Federal, National or 
Commonwealth services

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Report shows feedback on 
17 public services

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Feedback on all life events 
experienced in the 
last year, with detailed 
feedback on specific 
services accessed for one 
of those life events.

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Over 55,000 responses collected since March 2019

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Robust and reliable results. 
Quality assured by the 
Australian Bureau of Statistics 
Independent review of methodology by 
ANU Centre for Social Research 
in 2019. Tested through two pilots

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For more details about the survey, go to www.apsreform.gov.au/research/trust-in-australian-public-services or email TrustandTransparency@apsc.gov.au

 

About the report

Results shown are from responses 
collected monthly from July 2022 to June 2023. 
Respondents report on their experiences 
from the prior 12 months.

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Reporting on over 12,000 responses

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Data collected from +1,000 people each month

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Nationally representative sample including: 

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Report shows feedback on 17 public services. 
This is 5 more than last year’s report and 
includes:

  • Australian Consumer and Competition Commission
  • Parks Australia

  • Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, and more

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For more results see

Insights

General trust in Australian public services is at 61%[1] with no changes since last year.

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People were most satisfied with their experiences with staff and the information they were given while accessing services.

People were least satisfied with public service processes.

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Trust in specific services used has remained stable at 73%[2] in 2023, the same as in 2022.

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry had the largest increase from 2022 with an 11 percentage point increase, followed by the National Disability Insurance Scheme, with a 5 percentage point increase.

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Satisfaction remained relatively stable, dropping by 1 percentage point from 73% to 72%[3].

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An analysis of the drivers of trust and satisfaction shows how vulnerability, disadvantage and other life experiences are important factors for trust and satisfaction in addition to service experiences.

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91% of people who trusted services were also satisfied[4] with them.

30% of people who distrusted services[5] were still satisfied with them.

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[1] Q18 - General trust is the proportion of people who answered “strongly agree”, “agree” or “somewhat agree” when asked “How much do you agree with the following statement - ‘I can trust Australian public services’”.

[2] Q28 - Trust in specific services is the proportion of people who answered “strongly agree”, “agree” or “somewhat agree” when asked “How much do you agree with the following statement – ‘The service is trustworthy’” about a specific service. The proportion is adjusted pro rata for the amount of services each individual was asked about.

[3] Q20 - Satisfaction is the proportion of people who answered “Completely satisfied”, “Satisfied” or “Somewhat satisfied” when asked “Thinking about your overall experience with the above services, how satisfied or dissatisfied are you?”

[4] Q24 - Satisfaction with specific services is the proportion of people who answered “Completely satisfied”, “Satisfied” or “Somewhat satisfied” when asked how satisfied or dissatisfied they were with a specific service. The proportion is adjusted pro rata for the amount of services each individual was asked about.

[5] Q18 - General distrust is the proportion of people who answered “strongly disagree”, “disagree” or “somewhat disagree” when asked “How much do you agree with the following statement - ‘I can trust Australian public services’”.