THE Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has today tabled its report for the Inquiry into Commonwealth Financial Statements 2022-23.

Committee Chair Linda Burney stated that poor IT governance, particularly user access issues, continue to be among the significant findings of the Auditor-General’s report into the financial statements.

Ms Burney said, "Unauthorised user access to IT systems across the Commonwealth remains a problem as in previous years. The risks this poses are potentially significant as some of the agencies involved hold highly sensitive information."

Another area of particular concern to the committee from the 2022-23 audits was the increase in the number of annual reports not being presented in time to be scrutinised at end of year Estimates hearings.

Ms Burney said, "The Parliament must have this information, and is indeed entitled to expect it, in time to readily and properly scrutinise the expenditure of taxpayer funds."

Other matters considered by the committee included legislative breaches involving certain payments and incorrect executive remuneration or non-compliance with the Remuneration Tribunal; and the lack of a mandatory internal auditing function for Commonwealth entities.

The committee had made five recommendations in its report that include requests for updates from specific entities on addressing legislative breaches and IT governance shortfalls, and an explanation from agencies that have failed to present an annual report on time for three consecutive years.

The committee is also recommending the Department of Finance amends the current guidelines to require it to be notified immediately of any breaches of the executive remuneration rules, and that it develops a mandatory framework with detailed guidelines for internal auditing.

The report can be downloaded from the inquiry website.

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THE Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) will hold hearings on Thursday and Friday for its inquiry into the Cyber Security Legislative Package 2024.

The legislative package consists of the Cyber Security Bill 2024, the Security of Critical Infrastructure and Other Legislation Amendment (Enhanced Response and Prevention) Bill 2024 and the Intelligence Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Cyber Security) Bill 2024.

The Cyber Security Legislative Package intends to implement seven initiatives under the 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy, which aims to address legislative gaps to bring Australia in line with international best practice and to help ensure Australia is on track to become a global leader in cyber security.

Senator Raff Ciccone, Chair of the PJCIS, said, “The Cyber Security Legislative Package seeks to protect Australia’s cyber infrastructure, which is an essential component of Australia’s national security. These hearings will allow the committee to engage corporate, industry and civil society submitters. In addition, the committee will hear from government departments who will be tasked with implementing the legislation.

“Seeking a broad range of views will allow the Committee to provide balanced advice to the Parliament to help ensure the legislation operates as effectively as possible in response to ever increasing cyber threats," Senator Ciccone said.

Public Hearing Details

Thursday, 31 October 2024
10am – 4:45pm (AEDT)

Friday, 1 November 2024
9am – 1pm (AEDT)

Committee Room 2R1, Parliament House, Canberra

Further information on the inquiry can be obtained from the Committee’s website.

A program for the hearing can be found here and the hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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THE Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit today tabled its report for the Inquiry into Policy and Program Design and Implementation.

Committee Chair Linda Burney said specific recurring issues identified in the Auditor-General reports included in the inquiry appear to be impacting the effectiveness of government policy and program design, including inadequate stakeholder engagement, a lack of effective performance measures, and deficiencies in the advice to government.

Ms Burney said, "Ineffective decision-making and a departure from best practice resulted in some common issues across the audits examined by the Committee, even though they involved very different programs.

"This inquiry has highlighted that Commonwealth entities must remain vigilant in ensuring that they continue to meet best practice requirements when designing and implementing policies and programs for the benefit of the Australian public."

The committee has made 11 recommendations in this report which include requests for progress updates from audited entities on a variety of issues including stakeholder engagement planning, legislative changes, and information management processes.

The committee has also recommended that the Australian Government prioritises legislation that aligns the Health Insurance Act with the modern technological requirements of telehealth and that reforms the existing partner and child family visa programs to make them truly demand driven.

The report can be downloaded from the inquiry website.

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THE Joint Standing Committee on Trade and Investment Growth will hold three public hearings in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra to inform its inquiry into the understanding and utilisation of benefits under Free Trade Agreements (FTAs).

The committee will hear from industry groups, peak bodies, academics and community organisations about how Australian businesses are engaging in international trade and how access to the benefits offered by trade and Australia’s FTAs could be improved.

The inquiry is focusing on the level of awareness and uptake of the benefits available under Australia’s FTAs, including the promotion of the benefits of trade, the difficulties faced in accessing the benefits of trade agreements and how the utilisation of trade agreements is measured. The committee is also examining the extent to which regional, diaspora and First Nations communities take advantage of trade and FTA opportunities, including how these communities can be better engaged to build Australia’s trade.

Committee Chair, Steve Georganas MP said, “International trade brings significant economic and social benefits to all Australians. The committee is looking forward to hearing from stakeholders to better understand if the benefits offered by participation in trade are being maximised and how the utilisation of Australia’s free trade agreements could be improved.

“We are also interested in how Australia’s large diaspora communities participate in trade, and whether there are greater opportunities to utilise their knowledge, expertise and networks to foster closer business links and trade ties.”

These public hearings follow earlier hearings with several Australian Government departments and agencies, including the Department of Foreign Affairs and Austrade that focussed on the government’s role in supporting Australian businesses to enjoy the economic and social benefits of trade and Australia’s FTAs.

Public hearing details

Sydney

Date: Tuesday, 29 October 2024
Time: 9.30am to 2pm (AEST)
Location: Macquarie Room, NSW Parliament House

Melbourne

Date: Tuesday, 12 November 2024
Time: 10am to 2pm (AEST)
Location: TBC

Canberra

Date: Friday, 22 November 2024
Time: 9am to 2.30pm (AEST)
Location: Committee Room 1R4, Parliament House, Canberra

Further information about the inquiry, including the terms of reference, published submissions and hearing transcripts, are available on the inquiry webpage.

The hearing will be broadcast live at www.youtube.com/@AUSParliamentLive.

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