This audit would assess the effectiveness and efficiency of entities’ administration of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).

The FOI Act and the Australian Information Commissioner Act 2010 form the legislative framework that provides the public with a right of access to government documents. The ANAO previously undertook an audit of the administration of the FOI Act in 2017.

The Australian Information Commissioner’s freedom of information functions include conducting merits reviews of decisions of agencies made under the FOI Act and the handling of complaints. The Information Commissioner is supported in these functions by the Freedom of Information Commissioner. A new whole-of-government information management policy was adopted on 1 January 2021.

This audit would assess the Department of Finance’s and other selected entities’ administration of the Assurance Review framework, including the implementation readiness assessment and gateway review process for the delivery of major programs and projects. The framework is designed to strengthen governance and assurance practices and play an important role in assisting entities to successfully deliver major programs and projects.

The ANAO will conduct a series of audits of entities’ compliance with legislative and Australian Government policy requirements, such as:

• requirements of the Protective Security Policy Framework;
• requirements of the Commonwealth Risk Management Framework;
• requirements of the Commonwealth Fraud and Corruption Control Framework;
• information management requirements;
• management of conflicts of interest for SES level staff in entities;
• gifts, benefits and hospitality requirements; and
• domestic and international travel requirements.

The audits would examine the effectiveness of entities’ design, implementation and governance of arrangements to ensure compliance with relevant requirements. This would include assessment of whether audited entities have complied with requirements.

The audit would assess the delivery of outcomes achieved by selected entities as intended by government approved New Policy Proposals.

In its Report 495 Inquiry into Commonwealth Grants Administration, the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) recommended that the ANAO considers a future audit of the process by which the Minister for Finance is informed of grant approvals against the recommendation of the awarding agency. A cross portfolio audit examining this aspect of the grants framework was last conducted by the ANAO in 2011–12 (Auditor-General Report No. 21 2011–12 Administration of Grant Reporting Obligations). It is envisaged that a similar audit methodology will be employed, including undertaking a comprehensive analysis of agency briefs over a specified period provided to Ministerial decision-makers. The potential audit would also examine any analysis undertaken by the Department of Finance of reports provided to the Minister for Finance, and any resulting advice to the Minister for Finance either on a particular grant award or the grants framework.

The Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs) require that, in order to draw the market’s early attention to potential opportunities, each entity must maintain on AusTender a current procurement plan containing a short strategic procurement outlook. Entity procurement plans are also to include the subject matter of any significant planned procurement and the estimated publication date of the approach to market. Plans are to be updated regularly throughout the year. As at November 2023, 52% of the 133 reporting entities had not updated their procurement plans in over two years. Of the 3,752 open tenders published on AusTender between 1 July 2019 and 30 June 2023, 799 (21.3%) were reported as having been included in an Annual Procurement Plan.

This audit would examine the preparation of entity procurement plans and their effectiveness, including by analysing the extent to which significant procurements conducted had been included in the relevant annual procurement plan.

This audit series assesses the effectiveness of governance arrangements in selected entities for monitoring and implementing agreed parliamentary committee and Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) performance audit recommendations.

Parliamentary committee and Auditor-General reports identify areas where administration can be improved and make recommendations to improve the delivery of outcomes. Once entities have agreed to implement performance audit recommendations, or in the case of parliamentary committee reports, the Australian Government has committed to the implementation of recommendations, timely implementation in line with the intended outcome of the recommendation is important in achieving the full benefit of the recommendation.

This audit would continue the ANAO’s series of audits on cybersecurity.

The scope would include comparing the entities’ cybersecurity frameworks and controls against the controls required under the Protective Security Policy Framework (Policy 2 — Management structures and responsibilities, Policy 4 — Security maturity monitoring, and Policy 10 — Safeguarding information from cyber threats) and the Australian Signals Directorate’s Essential Eight Maturity Model.

This audit would assess whether entities’ procurement activities have been conducted in accordance with relevant Commonwealth Procurement Rules.

The National Intelligence Community (NIC) was officially formed in 2017 and comprises agencies from the Home Affairs, Defence, Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister and Cabinet portfolios. This audit would examine whether selected NIC entities have appropriately managed the procurement of major capabilities. It would include procurements used to develop capabilities of individual NIC agencies, as well as those that are for a shared capability across the sector.

This information report would provide transparency and insights on SES attrition from and movement within the Australian Public Service (APS). The potential data sources include the APS Employment Database, and information published on Gazette. This information report would be neither an audit nor an assurance review and would not present conclusions or opinions.