JCPAA publishes report of inquiry into Defence 2022-23 Major Projects Report

THE Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has published its report into the 2022-23 Major Projects Report.

Committee Chair, Linda Burney MP said, "Now in its 16th year, the Major Projects Report (MPR) continues to be an important tool for Defence accountability and transparency. In 2022-23, the 20 projects contained in the MPR constitute around 31 percent ($58.6 billion) of Defence’s total acquisition budget."

The committee examined a wide range of issues this year, including the reasons for the Auditor-General’s qualified conclusion and emphasis of matter.

The committee made four recommendations, which when implemented, will result in important corrections and introduce evolutions to the MPR process to improve its transparency and Defence’s accountability to the Parliament and the Australian public for what are large amounts of public expenditure.

Broadly, these recommendations deal with the reinstatement of lessons to PDSSs; reporting on improved governance and assurance processes; assessments of the full project costs of each project, including fundamental inputs to capability; and more clearly identifying scope, schedule and budget changes, both in-year and life-to-date for each project.

The report can be downloaded from the inquiry website.

The committee has also published its 2023-24 Annual Report, which can be downloaded from the Committee website.

 

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