The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Tax Office's administration of the wine tax.

Four key areas were examined in the audit: governance arrangements; interpretative assistance and advice; compliance approaches for Australian entities; and administering the rebate for New Zealand wine producers.

The ANAO conducted fieldwork in the Tax Office's Adelaide office between May and September 2010 and also held discussions with representatives from Customs, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) and New Zealand Inland Revenue. The ANAO also consulted with representatives of wine producers, wholesalers, retailers, tax agents and key industry associations, seeking their views on elements of the Tax Office's administration of the wine tax.

Mr P.J. Barrett (AM) - Auditor-General for Australia, presented at a Laboratory for Politicians and Top Managers from Different Public Institutions in Europe

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Tribunals' management of their operations. To this end, the audit examined whether the MRT and the RRT:

• have achieved intended operational efficiencies from the introduction of common facilities, services and resourcing;
• have established appropriate arrangements for governance, business planning and guidance of Members and staff, and for performance monitoring and reporting of Tribunal operations;
• finalise cases within Tribunal time and productivity standards; and
• provide applicants with services in accordance with service standards.

The audit covered Tribunal operations for review of visa decisions. The correctness of individual decisions was not assessed as part of the audit.

The audit focused particularly on developments in the Tribunals' management performance in the four year period from 2001–02 to 2004–05.

The objective of this follow-up audit was to examine Centrelink's progress in implementing the recommendations of the 2004–05 audit and the subsequent JCPAA inquiry.

Mr P.J. Barrett (AM) - Auditor-General for Australia, presented an Occasional Paper

The audit reviewed the implementation of the Whole-of-Government Information Technology Infrastructure Consolidation and Outsourcing Initiative (IT Initiative). The objectives of the audit were to examine the administrative and financial effectiveness of the implementation of the IT Initiative, with the focus being on the first four tenders conducted. Accordingly, the audit assessed:

• the effectiveness of the overall planning and implementation of the IT Initiative, taking into account the tendering, contracting and monitoring processes undertaken in respect of Cluster 3, DEETYA/EN, ATO and Group 5;
• the extent to which those latter processes have contributed to the achievement of the objectives of the IT Initiative; and
• the extent to which the Commonwealth's interests have been adequately protected within this context.

The objective of the performance audit was to review the progress in the delivery of contractual commitments for Industry Development (ID) for the five contracts awarded under the IT Outsourcing Initiative. In particular, the audit examined the effectiveness of the monitoring by DCITA of achievement against contractual commitments for ID; assessed the impact of changes to the IT outsourcing environment on the management and monitoring of ongoing ID obligations; and identified practices that have improved administrative arrangements.

The objective of the audit was to examine the effectiveness of the management and control of program evaluation in the Australian Public Service. The ANAO made an assessment against criteria which were designed to test whether agencies were undertaking evaluations in a way which would enhance their overall effectiveness. The main issues examined were:

• approaches to evaluation planning;
• the conduct of individual evaluations;
• the quality of evaluation reports; and
• the impact of evaluations.

The ANAO undertook an audit of the framework and systems that Industry, Science and Resources had in place to prevent, control, monitor, detect and investigate fraud. The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of these arrangements in relation to departmental administrative functions and program operations.

The objective of the audit was to assess the Child Support Agency's effectiveness in managing the implementation of the Building a Better Child Support Agency program.

The objective of the audit was to examine the efficiency and effectiveness of the administration of the tip-off system, including Centrelink's management of privacy issues related to the tip-off management process.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of Centrelink’s QOL control, which supports the integrity of payments administered by DHS on behalf of the Australian Government.

The ANAO Audit Report No. 51 of 2001/02, Research Project Management, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, assessed the effectiveness of CSIRO in administering research projects to deliver required results. The audit made nine recommendations designed to improve project management in CSIRO. The purpose of this follow-up audit was to assess the extent to which CSIRO has implemented the recommendations of the previous audit and of the JCPAA.

The objectives of the audit were to: examine the efficiency and administrative effectiveness of grant programs administered in the APS; and identify any specific problem areas and evidence of better practice in both program administration and agency guidelines not already included in the ANAO's 1994 Better Practice Guide on the Administration of Grants. The ANAO also sought to incorporate in the revision of the better practice guide the lessons learned through the audit to help ensure its continued relevance in public sector administration at all levels of government.

The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of Australian Government agencies' management and implementation of measures to protect and secure their electronic information, in accordance with Australian Government protective security requirements.

The second audit, which is the subject of this report, is a broader and more in-depth cross-portfolio audit. Its objective was to assess:

• the planning and delivery of capital works projects by proponent agencies;
• the extent to which projects have delivered on what was intended; and
• the extent to which proponent agencies have complied with the requirements of the Public Works Committee Act 1969 and approved procedures.

The objective of the audit was to examine the quality and integrity of DVA's income support records and to report on the effectiveness of the department's management of the data and how it impacts on service delivery.

The audit reviewed the retention of military personnel that are managed by the Australian Defence Force which comprises the three Services. The objective of the audit was to review the management of personnel retention within the ADF with a view to evaluating the measures Defence has in place to monitor and control the flow of trained personnel from the Services

The Navy Operational Readiness audit examined the systems that Navy uses to manage readiness and concludes coverage of Navy: readiness organisation and management structures (as well as the interface between these systems and Defence enabling operations); management and maintenance of operational readiness (covering personnel, collective training and other components of operational readiness); and readiness performance information processes. The objective of the audit was to provide assurance to Parliament concerning the progress that Navy has made in the development of operational readiness management and evaluation systems and to identify areas for improvement in these systems.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of DHS’ implementation of initiatives to support the delivery of services to Indigenous Australians.

The objective of the audit was to examine the effectiveness of the management of maintenance of the Defence estate, taking particular account of planning and delivery aspects.

The audit examined: Defence’s policies, procedures, processes and supporting tools related to the planning and delivery of the maintenance of the estate; and services provided to Defence by private sector firms in relation to maintenance activities. The audit did not focus on contract management matters, nor on the systems used by Defence to maintain information related to estate maintenance.

The audit objective was to assess the effectiveness of DoHA’s administration in supporting the creation and development of health infrastructure from the HHF, including DoHA’s support for the Health Minister and the HHF Advisory Board.

The audit objectives were to assess the effectiveness of:

• selected agencies’ administration in developing advertising campaigns and implementing key processes against the requirements of the Australian Government’s campaign advertising framework, and other key legal and administrative requirements; and
• the ongoing administration of the campaign advertising framework.

The audit assessed whether Centrelink effectively manages customer debt, excluding debt relating to Family Tax Benefit, consistently across its network, ensuring integrity of payments made on behalf of the Department of Family and Community Services (FaCS). The audit assessed five components of Centrelink's debt management processes, including administration, prevention, identification, raising and recovery.

Following on from the 2002 audit, the ANAO decided to conduct an audit of trust monies in entities operating under the Commonwealth Authorities and Companies Act 1997 (CAC Act). The objectives of the current audit were to: · assess whether the selected entities were managing trust monies in accordance with legal and administrative requirements and better practice principles; · identify better practice in the management of trust monies; and · as necessary, recommend improvements in the controls and practices relating to the management of trust monies.

The objective of the audit was to assess whether Defence is effectively managing the EO Services Contract.

The audit focused mainly on Defence's contract management framework, including the arrangements to monitor the contractor’s performance in delivering services under the contract. The audit also examined the processes used by Defence to develop the current version of the contract and the extent to which the revised contract, as negotiated in 2006, provides an assurance of better value for money when compared to the original contract signed in 2001.

The objective of the audit was to examine the effectiveness of Centrelink's approach to investigating and responding to external fraud. The ANAO's assessment was based on four key criteria. In particular, the ANAO assessed whether Centrelink:

• had established a management framework, business systems and guidelines, that support the investigation, prosecution and reporting of fraud;
• had implemented appropriate case selection strategies and controls to ensure resources are targeted to the cases of highest priority;
• complied with relevant external and internal requirements when investigating fraud and referring cases for consideration of prosecution; and
• had implemented an effective training program that supports high quality investigations and prosecution referrals.

Mr P.J. Barrett (AM) - Auditor-General for Australia, presented at the CPA Australia National Public Sector Convention, Perth

The objective of this audit was to assess the effectiveness of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's (DIAC) administration of the character requirements of the Migration Act.

The audit objective was to assess whether the early stages of DIAC's preparations for the re-tendering of the detention and health services contracts were consistent with sound practice. The audit focused on governance arrangements, in particular the recordkeeping arrangements, roles and responsibilities of personnel, expert advisors and the probity auditor—matters raised in the previous audit report. The audit did not examine the RFT, which is not due to be issued until April 2007.