Bureau of Meteorology boss Andrew Johnson has apologised for the confusion caused by the agency’s request to be referred to as “the bureau”.
In mid-October, the national weather forecaster asked media outlets to ditch its longstanding nickname “the BOM” in favour of its full name “the Bureau of Meteorology” or “the bureau”.
The statement, which came with a visual rebrand and new Twitter handles, was met with derision and a slew of sardonic tweets.
In response, Mr Johnson publicly apologised at Friday’s Senate estimates hearing.
“Like any large organisation, there are times where we don’t get it right,” he said.
“Recent public commentary about the name of our organisation is no reflection whatsoever on our capability and devotion to keeping Australians informed.
“I sincerely apologise if this commentary has caused confusion or uncertainty in the community. That was certainly not our intention.”
Mr Johnson said the forecaster’s myriad names were confusing to older and linguistically diverse Australians, and stressed the bureau’s announcement was not a rebrand nor a name change, but an attempt to “provide a clear and consistent presence”.
“We have simply asked media outlets to refer to us by that name because we think that will increase the effectiveness of our readings and forecasts, particularly for at-risk communities.”
The CEO also used the opportunity to address claims about workplace chaos at the bureau that emerged after the branding debacle.
A Saturday Paper report alleged the bureau banned mentions of climate change in connection with severe weather events and blocked individual meteorologists from making public statements about global warming, but Mr Johnson said the forecaster’s stance was clear.
“For many years, we have provided evidence including to this committee that climate change is real and it is very likely that human activities have caused most of the global warming we have seen since 1950,” he said.
“I’ve always felt that our views are always open.”
He made a clear distinction between the bureau’s job as a weather forecaster and CSIRO‘s role as a climate research body.
“We largely focus on phenomena that go from days through to months and our colleagues at the CSIRO focus on things that go from months through to years.”
However, Mr Johnson did not engage with claims about his agency’s high turnover and toxic workplace culture.
“We take all workplace issues seriously and we are committed to providing a healthy, safe and productive workplace.”
