Reforms to set up the new centralised Services Australia agency have been signed.

Administrative arrangements orders have been published, laying out a series of changes to service delivery arrangements to create Services Australia.

Some analysts say public servants will be moved from “one of the most horizontal, flexible and openly creative cultures in the APS to a massive, heavily hierarchical and overtly industrialised workplace weathered ministerial instability”.

Services Australia replaces the Department of Human Services, which includes the technology infrastructure for Centrelink and Medicare.

Services Australia will oversee “design, development, delivery, co-ordination and monitoring of government services, social security, child support, students, families, aged care and health programs”.

The new agency takes responsibility for whole-of-government service delivery from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.