The objective of this audit was to examine the efficiency and administrative effectiveness of processes the Australian Customs Service uses to screen incoming and outgoing mail. It also considers the involvement of other stakeholders such as Australia Post and Australian Quarantine Inspection Service.

The audit reviewed the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) management of the provision of employment services information to job seekers up to the point where job seekers are referred to Job Network. The objective of the audit was to examine the administrative effectiveness of DEWR's management of the provision of information to job seekers, focusing on determining what information should be provided, developing an effective means of providing information, and assuring that information is being delivered effectively.

The audit reviewed collection management practices and management information systems of the National Library of Australia, National Gallery of Australia, National Museum of Australia and the Australian War Memorial. The objective of the audit was to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the management processes employed in safeguarding national collections.

Although the audit examined broader aspects of the ATO's administration (such as, tobacco excise governance arrangements, intelligence capability and compliance and investigations activities), we placed particular emphasis on the strategies used by the ATO to address the proliferation of chop-chop (Australian grown tobacco sold illicitly in a chopped up form for $80 to $100 per kilogram. In comparison, 50 grams of legal roll-you-own tobacco costs around $16 i.e. $320 per kilogram) in the Australian markets, as it is an area of major risk to tobacco excise revenue.

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 the audit was to assess the effectiveness of Department of Infrastructure and Transport’s and the Attorney‐General’s Department’s management of the Aviation and Maritime Security Identification Card (ASIC and MSIC) schemes.

Mr P.J. Barrett (AM) - Auditor-General for Australia, presented at the Health Insurance Commission Senior Management Group

The audit examined the review of decisions on veterans' disability compensation. The audit objective was to examine the management of internal review by the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) and external review by the Veterans' Review Board (VRB) of decisions by the Repatriation Commission on veterans' claims for disability compensation.

The objective of the audit was to examine the effectiveness of DAFF's implementation and administration of the Securing our Fishing Future structural adjustment package industry and community assistance programs.

The general objectives of the audit were to:

• obtain and report quantitative and qualitative benchmarks of performance in the public sector; and
• compare the public sector benchmarks with equivalent international data to identify better practices and highlight opportunities for improvement.

In relation to internal audit, given the three-year duration of the study, these generic objectives have been extended to include an analysis of trends in internal audit over the past three years.