Some bureaucrats are questioning the cost of flying teams of their colleagues to conferences in northern Australia, as the federal government demands the public service tightens its belt even further.
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One insider who blew the whistle on this practice said the overwhelming majority of delegates at a gathering in Darwin were from Canberra.
Member for Canberra Gai Brodtmann revealed last night she had been approached by senior bureaucrats who were keen to be allowed to find savings themselves, rather than have their jobs threatened.
It was wasteful to have groups of officials travelling to some distant conferences, she said.
''I have senior public servants calling in to identify efficiencies in their own agencies, they're giving me suggestions and I'm passing them on,'' she said. ''In the travel area, one is business class travel, another is conferences interstate.
''A public servant told us that there was a conference in Darwin where most of the people attending that conference were from Canberra.
''This is why people need to be looking at ways to identify efficiencies and travel is a very good one, particularly with the technology that is available.''
The federal government has increased the efficiency dividend to 4 per cent for this financial year, to force departments and agencies to cut costs.
The mid-year budget review is expected to propose further cost-cutting as the government struggles to meet its objective of a surplus, despite falling revenue.
The union representing public servants, the Community and Public Sector union, says the government's pursuit of a budget surplus will cost 4200 jobs and result in reduced public services.
The Business Council says the political independence of the public servant has been undermined by political gatekeepers in ministers' offices, resulting in development of poor policy.
However, the industry group says the bureaucracy should be leaner, by removing the ''no forced redundancy'' policy.
Asked if she believed the public service was hurting, Ms Brodtmann said, ''The fact that I've got public servants ringing me up with further suggestions on efficiencies would suggest there's still a bit of room there, except for the small agencies.''
Today she will call on ACT Liberals to oppose the scope of public service job cuts proposed by an incoming federal coalition government.
The coalition has promised to cut the public service nationwide by 12,000 jobs through natural attrition.
''We've never been focused on jobs, what we're about is efficiency,'' Ms Brodtmann said.
''The coalition has got this set figure in their minds and in my view they've got a complete distain for the public service.
''Joe Hockey is bragging about the fact that he wants to get rid of 20,000 jobs. Where are those jobs coming from, which agencies are they looking at?
''The thing that concerns me is not just the job cuts but the knock-on effect for the Canberra community.
''What we're seeing in Queensland and Victoria is a random and unsystematic approach to cutting jobs in the public service.
''It's ideology driven, it's not based on any understanding of the public service and it's having unintended consequences in that it's having a significant impact on front-line services.''
Ms Brodtmann commissioned research from the parliamentary library which confirms the loss of jobs and increase in bankruptcies in Canberra when John Howard cut the public service in his first term.
