The overall objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of Refresh and, in particular:

• the extent to which Centrelink has used the funds invested by the Government to develop its IT capability and realise the anticipated service delivery, financial and other benefits; and
• how Centrelink's programme management approach and Refresh's oversight arrangements have contributed to the achievement of the outcomes of the programme.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the NDIA’s management of claimant compliance with NDIS claim requirements.

The objective of this audit was to examine the effectiveness of bilateral agreement arrangements between Services Australia and other entities.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry’s management of the biosecurity workforce.

Governance of Data is targeted at Australian Government officials in information governance roles and those who use data to achieve organisational objectives.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Employment and the Department of Education and Training's administration of the Shared Services Centre to achieve efficiencies and deliver value to its customers.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation's workforce planning to support key activities.

The objective of this audit was to assess whether Human Services has an effective high-level compliance strategy for administered payments made under the Centrelink and Medicare programs. 

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the establishment of the Workforce Australia Services panel.

Welcome to the last edition of Audit Matters for 2025. I’ve provided some insights in this edition which may help you to focus on a few areas of audit interest in the new year.

Audit work, as you know, is ongoing. We’ll start tabling reports again in mid-late January 2026. Next year you’ll also see some shorter performance audit reports, as part of a trial we’re undertaking to bring reports to the Parliament more quickly. Thanks to those agencies who have worked with us as we trial this new approach. We’re also doing some important work on how we approach performance statements audits in the 21 entities subject to this process. Watch out for our summary report on performance statements early in 2026 — you can subscribe to be notified of release on our website.

I wish you and your teams a restful break over the holiday season after a big year in the public sector. I look forward to seeing you in 2026.

Rona Mellor PSM, Deputy Auditor-General