State of the Nation critiques the policies and performance of the Rudd and Gillard governments in Australia since 2007 in diverse policy areas. It does so through the distinctive voices of fifteen distinguished and non-partisan Australians who are independent experts in their fields. The policy areas considered range from the resources sector, where real damage has been done to one of the great drivers of the Australian economy, to defence, where the absence of strategy and the deep cuts in spending have risked Australia's national security; from border protection, where hundreds of boatpeople have died trying to take advantage of lax Australian policies, to the National Broadband Network, where tens of billions of dollars of taxpayers' funds have been committed without proper process or adequate reporting. Other topics include trade and foreign policy, including the mismanagement of Australia's relations with China; social policy fields such as welfare reform, mental health, and homelessness; agriculture and regional Australia, culture and higher education – and, given the importance of good process in policy-making and public administration, an agenda for reform of the Australian public service. This book tells the sorry story of a failure of ideas, process, and leadership in Australia since 2007. Chapters: THE RESOURCES SECTOR – KEITH DELACY, RESTORING THE LIBERAL BASE TO TRADE POLICY – ALAN OXLEY, AUSTRALIAN FOREIGN POLICY – PAUL O'SULLIVAN, AUSTRALIA AND CHINA – GEOFF RABY, DEFENCE – JIM MOLAN, BORDER PROTECTION – ADRIENNE MILLBANK, MENTAL HEALTH – JOHN MENDOZA, WELFARE REFORM – PATRICK MCCLURE, HOMELESSNESS POLICY – TOBY HALL, AGRICULTURAL POLICY – BRIAN FISHER, THE SEARCH FOR A REGIONAL AUSTRALIA POLICY – DICK ESTENS, THE NATIONAL BROADBAND NETWORK – KEVIN MORGAN, HIGHER EDUCATION – STEVEN SCHWARTZ, AUSTRALIAN CULTURE – DONALD MCDONALD, REFORM OF THE AUSTRALIAN PUBLIC SERVICE – PETER SHERGOLD. Editors: Professor Don Markwell is Executive Director of the Menzies Research Centre, and has been Warden of Rhodes House, Oxford; Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education) of the University of Western Australia; and Warden of Trinity College, University of Melbourne. Rachael Thompson has been a regional newspaper editor, journalist, and ministerial adviser, and is Deputy Director of the Menzies Research Centre and a small business owner. Julian Leeser is a university administrator, lawyer and former ministerial advisor. He was Executive Director of the Menzies Research Centre (2006-2012).