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The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Social Services' administration of Early Intervention Services for Children with Disability.
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The purpose of the audit was to assess whether management of parliamentary workflow by the agencies reviewed was efficient and effective and to identify elements of good practice. In assessing agency effectiveness and efficiency, the audit focussed on issues of client service such as timeliness, quality and cost. It considered also the governance framework and accountability arrangements relevant to parliamentary workflow, as well as more operational considerations including the use of information technology, development of relevant management information and suitable benchmarking processes.
The audit objective was to assess the Australian Taxation Office’s effectiveness in managing complaints.
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The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the design and establishment of the Regional Investment Corporation.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Taxation Office's activities in addressing Superannuation Guarantee non-compliance.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the ATO's management of its interpretative assistance activities for SMSFs.
The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO) management of transfer pricing for related party debt.
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Given the importance of customer feedback to Centrelink's business, the ANAO considered it timely to conduct a series of performance audits relating to Centrelink's customer feedback systems, particularly in relation to its delivery of the services then provided on behalf of FaCS. The overarching objective of this series of ANAO performance audits of Centrelink's customer feedback systems was to assess whether Centrelink has effective processes and systems for gathering, measuring, reporting and responding effectively to customer feedback, including in relation to customer satisfaction with Centrelink services and processes.
The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Department of Defence’s Projects of Concern regime is effective in managing the recovery of underperforming projects.
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The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of monitoring arrangements (by the Accreditation Agency) and compliance activities (by DoHA) put in place to achieve residential aged care homes’ compliance with the Accreditation Standards and their other, related, responsibilities under the Act and its associated instruments.
The ANAO’s assessment considered whether:
— a sector-wide compliance strategy was in place and aligned with effective monitoring and compliance activities at the operational level;
— there was a clear articulation of the separat but complementary roles and responsibilities of DoHA and the Accreditation Agency; and
— performance information gathered by both agencies to support public reporting and business improvements was useful and enabled comparison of performance over time.
The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of the Treasury’s design and implementation of the Measuring What Matters framework.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Taxation Office’s administration of capital gains tax for individual and small business taxpayers.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the NDIA’s management of assistance with daily life supports.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the administration of the Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme by the Department of Defence and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development’s design and implementation of the first funding round of the Bridges Renewal Programme.
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The objective of this audit is to examine the effectiveness of the TGA’s administration of complementary medicines regulation in Australia. The primary focus is on listed complementary medicines, which comprise about 98 per cent of these medicines.
The ANAO conducted fieldwork in each of the audited agencies to identify the processes they used to design and review forms. The ANAO also identified the extent to which the agencies' forms are available online and their approaches to placing forms online.
The audit concluded that the ATO has an administratively effective framework for managing the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme (EGCS), introduced in mid-2003. The planning, monitoring and reporting framework is structured and appropriate, the risk and compliance management framework is generally well-developed and the processes and controls framework is comprehensive. Changes in the Scheme, as foreshadowed in Government's Energy White Paper, Securing Australia's Energy Future, present the opportunity to enhance the transparency of Scheme objectives and develop ways to evaluate performance against these objectives
The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water's governance arrangements supporting the implementation of the Australian Government’s climate change commitments.
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Mr Ian McPhee - Auditor-General for Australia, presented at the 20th Commonwealth Auditors-General Conference
This report summarises audit and other related activities of the Australian National Audit Office in the period January to June 1999.
The report summarises the audit and other related activities of the ANAO in the period July to December 2001. Key issues arising from performance audits tabled in this period are summarised.
Mr Mr Ian McPhee, AO PSM - Auditor-General for Australia, presented an Australian Country Paper at the 6th ASOSAI Symposium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Taxation Office's administration of the JobKeeper scheme.
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The objective of this audit was to examine whether the Australian Postal Corporation (Australia Post) is meetings its Community Service and International obligations efficiently and the effectiveness of Commonwealth shareholders in monitoring value for money.
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Mr Ian McPhee - Auditor-General for Australia, presented at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, Audit Conference, Melbourne
Mr P.J. Barrett (AM) - Auditor-General for Australia, addressed the Institute of Internal Auditors, Canberra
The objectives of the audit were to determine whether FaCS and Centrelink had: a valid Business Case for the Edge project, as revised from time to time, including estimated costs, actual costs, and expected benefits; effective governance of the project, including reviews at critical points in the project and subsequent decisions to continue or, in the final analysis, to discontinue; an appropriate contract with SoftLaw, which was adequately managed; delivered appropriate advice on progress, project viability, and acceptable solutions to technical issues to Executive of FaCS and Centrelink during the project; and valid reasons for discontinuing the project. The ANAO began this audit in March 2004, four months after the Edge project was terminated, following the Auditor-General's agreement to a suggestion by the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit that the project was a suitable subject for audit.
The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s overseas crisis management and response arrangements in meeting the government’s objectives for returning Australians from overseas in response to the COVID-19 global pandemic.
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The objective of the audit was to form an opinion and report on the efficiency, economy and administrative effectiveness of the management of the investigation and recovery of the proceeds of crime. The audit examined a sample of cases of serious crime investigated by the NCA and the AFP and prosecuted by the DPP.
This report summarises audit and other related activities of the Australian National Audit Office in the period July to December 1999.
The audit sought to assess how well the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) manages aggressive tax planning. We did this by exploring the nature of aggressive tax planning and the ATO's approach to its management. In the latter context, we looked at:
- the ATO's previous experience with aggressive tax planning and action on previous significant external reviews, particularly dealing with mass marketed investment schemes;
- strategy and operations, intelligence gathering and use; and the identification and management of promoters given their significant role in aggressive tax planning.
Mr P.J. Barrett (AM) - Auditor-General for Australia, presented at the Department of Employment, Workplace Relations and Small Business Leadership Development Program
The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Defence’s design process and implementation to date of the Defence Export Strategy.
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The audit objective was to examine progress in the development of an overarching approach and guidance for the management of the Commonwealth's intellectual property (Recommendation No. 2 of Audit Report No. 25 of 2003–04).
The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of the Department of Human Services’ management of Smart Centres’ Centrelink telephone services.
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The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Australian Taxation Office and the Department of Agriculture have effectively administered the Farm Management Deposits (FMD) Scheme.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency’s implementation and administration of the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Scheme.
The objective of this audit was to assess the department’s design, implementation and monitoring of select 2014–15 and 2015–16 Budget measures aimed at achieving $1.2 billion in savings and other benefits.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the arrangements for oversighting the Action Plan and whether the Plan's new measures have been administered effectively to deliver the intended results.
This is the first of two audit reports concerning the Tax Office's administration of SMSFs pursuant to the provisions of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.
This audit report examines the efficiency and effectiveness of the Tax Office's approach to regulating and registering self managed superannuation funds. Specifically the ANAO examined the:
- Environment in which SMSFs operate, including the Tax Office's regulatory roles and responsibilities;
- Tax Office's governance of its SMSF regulatory role; and
- Systems, processes and controls the Tax Office uses to register SMSFs, and enforce the lodgement of fund income tax and regulatory returns.
In two letters dated 19 and 22 June 2009, the Prime Minister requested a performance audit of a range of matters relating to representations to the Treasury regarding automotive finance arrangements for car dealers. In response to these requests, the Auditor-General decided that ANAO would undertake a performance audit under section 18 of the Auditor-General Act 1997 (Auditor-General Act). The audit objective, based on the matters raised in the Prime Minister's correspondence and in the Parliament, was to examine and report on:
- any representations to the Treasury since October 2008 from all sources regarding automotive finance arrangements for car dealers, including any made in relation to John Grant Motors;
- the nature of these representations;
- the manner in which the representations were responded to by officials, having regard to any relevant standards and procedures; and
- any related administrative matters that came to attention.
The objective of the audit was to examine how efficiently and effectively the Australian Customs Service administers the Passenger Movement Charge, including the interim arrangements with airlines. The audit was intended to provide guidance to ACS on key issues and areas of risk it should address in developing the system supporting the collection of PMC. Audit criteria were determined to consider how well revenue was protected and how well the administrative arrangements were operating. The audit sought to identify areas for improvement in the formulation of longer-term arrangements.
Mr P.J. Barrett (AM) - Auditor-General for Australia, presented to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India
The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of DHS' management of the tender process for a replacement BasicsCard to support the delivery of the income management scheme.
In conducting the audit, the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) assessed the following five key areas of the replacement BasicsCard procurement process, which are described in the Department of Finance and Deregulation's (Finance) Guidance on the Mandatory Procurement Procedures :
• planning for the procurement;
• preparing to approach the market;
• approaching the market;
• evaluating tender submissions; and
• concluding the procurement, including contract negotiation.
The audit objective was to examine whether the Department of Defence provides an efficient and effective security vetting service for Australian Government entities through the Australian Government Security Vetting Agency.
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The audit was undertaken following advice from the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) to the Auditor-General that assurance that ABC programming adequately reflects the ABC's Charter was an audit priority of Parliament. The objective of the audit is to provide Parliament with this assurance. The focus of the audit was on the governance arrangements of the ABC Board and management that enable the ABC to demonstrate the extent to which it is achieving its' Charter obligations, and other related statutory requirements, efficiently and effectively. The scope of the audit was as follows:
- Review the ABC's corporate governance framework against better practice models. The ANAO had regard to the ABC's unique role as a national public broadcaster established as a budget funded Commonwealth statutory authority subject to the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997.
- Examine the ABC Board's approach to the interpretation of the Charter requirements of the ABC and the setting of strategic directions, and management's administrative arrangements for implementing the strategic directions established by the Board.
- Examine the ABC's performance information framework, the development, documentation and use of performance measures in relation to targets and/or objectives, the monitoring and reporting of performance and its' inter-relationship with the corporate planning and budgetary processes, particularly in relation to the strategic directions set by the Board.
The audit did not examine the overall management of the ABC. In keeping with the audit scope, the audit examined ways in which the ABC aligns its' strategic directions with its' Charter requirements for programs broadcast on radio, television and on-line and assures itself, and Parliament, about the achievement of its' Charter obligations. Further, the audit did not examine the operations of ABC Enterprises or symphony orchestras that operate as ABC-owned subsidiary companies.
The objective of the audit is to assess the effectiveness of the ADF’s mechanisms for learning from its military operations and exercises. In particular, the audit focused on the systems and processes the ADF uses for identifying and acting on lessons, and for evaluating performance. The ANAO also examined the manner in which information on lessons is shared within the ADF, with other relevant government agencies, and with international organisations. Reporting to Parliament was also considered.
This cross-portfolio audit reviewed the management of Internet security across ten Commonwealth agencies, with the objective of forming an opinion on the adequacy of Internet security management within the selected agencies. The audit pursued two strands - a review of the management systems employed within agencies including the adequacy of risk assessments, security policies and plans, day to day management and business continuity planning in connection with the agencies' Internet presence, and physical testing of the security arrangements of selected Internet sites. Staff from the Defence Signals Directorate were appointed under the Auditor-General Act 1997 to perform the site testing.
The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of Health's management of the MPSP and the RHSP. To achieve the audit's objective, the ANAO examined whether Health; had an effective approach to planning the programs; had an effective approach to delivering the programs; effectively used performance information to manage the programs; and effectively managed its relationship with all stakeholders of the programs.
The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Human Services' (DHS) administration of the shopfront co-location of DHS services.
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The objective of the audit was to assess the ATO's administration of the Surcharge. Specifically, the audit sought to: report on the environment into which the Surcharge was introduced, including the legislative intent behind the Surcharge, and the current Surcharge environment; examine and report on aspects of Surcharge governance; assess the systems, processes and controls the ATO uses to: match Member Contributions Statements (MCS) data with income tax return data using Tax File Numbers (TFNs); process Surcharge information; and issue Surcharge liability assessments. assess the mechanisms the ATO uses to assess, classify, manage and rectify existing Surcharge exceptions, and prevent future exceptions from occurring; and examine the mechanisms and strategies the ATO uses to provide assurance that members and holders of contributions are complying with their Surcharge obligations.
The objective of the audit was to assess whether the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has established effective risk management arrangements to support the implementation of the Statistical Business Transformation Program.
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Mr P.J. Barrett (AM) - Auditor-General for Australia, presented at the IPAA ACT Division, Half day seminar
The objective of the audit was to assess whether Defence Housing Australia administers its functions efficiently and effectively, and in accordance with the Government Business Enterprise guidelines.
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Family and Community Services' Oversight of Centrelink's Assesment of New Claims for the Age Pension
The objective of the audit was to assess whether FaCS had established effective business arrangements with Centrelink to help ensure that new claims for Age Pension were properly assessed in accordance with the Social Security Law and the Guide to the Social Security Law. In the context of the audit objective, the primary issues examined were whether FaCS had:
- established an appropriate business framework;
- adopted an appropriate risk management approach;
- appropriately monitored and evaluated performance; and
- provided relevant business support to Centrelink.
The objective of this audit was to examine the effectiveness of the Australian Electoral Commission’s management of financial disclosures required under Part XX of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918, including the extent to which the AEC is achieving accurate and complete financial disclosures.
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DFAT is responsible for implementing the Government's foreign and trade policy decisions. The objective of the audit was to assess DFAT's management of bilateral relations and to identify any scope for improvement.
Mr Mr Ian McPhee - Auditor-General for Australia, presentation to the Global Working Group of Auditors-General
The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the design process and monitoring arrangements for the National Innovation and Science Agenda by the relevant entities.
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