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Request for audit
Community Sport Infrastructure — female facilities and water safety
Response provided
Responded: Friday 24 July 2020
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The Auditor-General responded on Thursday 27 February 2020 to correspondence from senators Janet Rice and Larissa Waters dated 7 February 2020, requesting that the Auditor-General investigate the decision-making process under the Community Sport Infrastructure — female facilities and water safety program, and the conduct of any relevant parties in relation to this matter. The Auditor-General provided a follow-up response to senators Rice and Waters on 24 July 2020.
Auditor-General's follow-up response
24 July 2020
Senator Janet Rice
Australian Greens Senator for Victoria
By email: Senator.Rice@aph.gov.au
Senator Larissa Waters
Australian Greens Senator for Queensland
By email: Senator.Waters@aph.gov.au
Dear Senator Rice and Senator Waters
On 27 February 2020 I wrote to you noting that I would consider your request that I examine the decision-making process related to grants awarded under the Female Facilities and Water Safety Stream Program in the development of the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) 2020-21 Annual Audit Work Program (AAWP).
Your request was carefully considered in relation to other competing priorities for audit coverage across the public sector, including audit topics related to the government’s response to COVID-19, and I decided that an audit of the program you referred is not currently a higher priority than other audits currently included in the AAWP and therefore has not been included as a potential audit topic in the program.
The AAWP is available from the ANAO’s website at https://www.anao.gov.au/work-program.
The ANAO will continue to monitor emerging risks and challenges that impact on the public sector and review planned audit coverage throughout the year in response to these factors. I also intend to undertake further consideration of COVID-19 related topics as the government response to this pandemic is implemented.
Yours sincerely
Grant Hehir
Auditor-General's response
27 February 2020
Senator Janet Rice
Australian Greens Senator for Victoria
By email: Senator.Rice@aph.gov.au
Senator Larissa Waters
Australian Greens Senator for Queensland
By email: Senator.Waters@aph.gov.au
Dear Senator Rice and Senator Waters
Thank you for your letter of 7 February 2020 requesting that I examine the decision-making process related to grants awarded under the Female Facilities and Water Safety Stream Program.
I will consider including an audit of the program you have referred inthe context of developing the Australian National Audit Office’s (ANAO) 2020–21 Annual Audit Work Program (work program).
The work program is designed to inform the Parliament, the public and government entities of planned audit coverage to commence in 2020–21 and will be published on the ANAO website in early July 2020.
Yours sincerely
Grant Hehir
Auditor-General
Correspondence from Senators Janet Rice and Larissa Waters
Transcript of letter from Senators Janet Rice and Larissa Waters
Mr Grant Hehir
Auditor-General
Australian National Audit Office
GPO Box 707
Canberra, ACT 2601
Via email: grant.hehir@anao.gov.au
7 February 2020
Dear Mr Hehir
Re: Female Facilities and Water Safety Stream Program
We refer to recent media reports in relation to the Female Facilities and Water Safety Stream Program (“Coalition quietly spent another $150m sports grant fund during election campaign”, Guardian, 7 February 2020).
The Department of Infrastructure, Regional Development and Cities Portfolio Budget Statement
2019-20 indicates that the stream was a component of the Community Sport Infrastructure program (Table 2.3.2, p. 47), with funding of $150m allocated over four years. However recent statements by the Government indicate that the program was not open to grants, with projects selected as election commitments.
Media reports similarly indicate that funding through the program were allocated predominantly on a political basis, rather than using a merit-based approach. In particular, it appears that a number of significant announcements were made during the election period.
Community-based sporting clubs and associations are an integral part of our society, and the integrity of sport should be encouraged by sound and transparent governance structures.
We ask that you please investigate the decision-making process under this program, and the conduct of any relevant parties in relation to this matter.
Yours sincerely,
Senator Janet Rice
Australian Greens spokesperson for Sport
Senator Larissa Waters
Australian Greens Senate Leader, Spokesperson for Democracy