Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Bruce for the opportunity to discuss the role that the Auditor-General plays in our democracy. Despite a personal friendship, there are many areas on which the member for Bruce and I do not always agree, but the importance of the Auditor-General and the work of the Australian National Audit Office is one area on which we most certainly agree.

The ANAO's work in auditing Commonwealth entities assists in ensuring accountability and transparency, helping to improve public governance and administration. As chair of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit, I have seen firsthand the ANAO's valuable work in providing reports to the parliament that assist in improving the accountability, efficiency and effectiveness of government. I want to place on record my appreciation for the role that the Auditor-General and the ANAO play and the important work they do. The JCPAA has had a long tradition of operating as a bipartisan committee to support and protect the independence of the ANAO, and I take the activities of this committee seriously.

This motion also outlines issues regarding the ANAO's budget. Under the Public Accounts and Audit Committee Act, the JCPAA is required to consider the draft budget estimates of the ANAO and make recommendations to both houses of parliament. As the member for Bruce is aware, the committee made a statement on budget day expressing its view on the 2020-21draft budget estimates and made representations, as is appropriate, to advocate its position. However, this statement is not the end of the JCPAA's input into the ANAO's budget. On 2 September 2020, the committee began an inquiry into the Auditor-General Act, which includes consideration of resourcing arrangements.

I note that the Prime Minister referred specifically to this review in the House earlier this year and said that the government would consider future ANAO funding in the context of its response to that review. The Prime Minister said:

There is a 10-year review currently underway into the ANAO and what their resourcing requirements are.

… when the government receives the outcomes of that 10-year review, we will consider the resourcing for the ANAO.

The terms of reference for this inquiry will look at many of the issues and concerns raised by the member for Bruce in this motion, including the examination of governance frameworks, the independence of the ANAO, information gathering powers and the interaction of legislative frameworks. The review will also look at the Auditor-General's capacity to initiate audits, the accessibility and transparency of audits and audit conclusions, the audit priorities of the parliament and the role and appointment of the independent auditor.

This motion also argues that the ANAO should become a parliamentary department, inferring there could be potential conflicts created by the current structure. But the Auditor-General and the ANAO already have statutory independence from government in the work they conduct. The motion seems to suggest a connection between the ANAO operating within the Prime Minister and Cabinet portfolio and that the ANAO didn't receive the supplementary funding that it requested in the 2020-21 budget. This would also appear to conflate the issues. For instance, the Parliamentary Budget Office, which is a parliamentary department, also requested and also didn't receive the supplementary funding it requested as part of the recent budget. However, ultimately, these broader issues are matters for the JCPAA's 10-year review of the Auditor-General's Act to consider, and I would certainly welcome further consideration of these matters throughout the inquiry.

The member for Bruce raised the need for a national integrity commission in this motion. Preventing corrupt, criminal behaviour in the public sector is an important issue and one the government is taking strong action on. The Morrison government has released a consultation draft of legislation to create a Commonwealth integrity body for the federal public sector. This draft legislation will ensure the new body has appropriate resources and powers to investigate allegations of criminal conduct and will be led by an integrity commissioner. The model proposed builds on lessons learnt from state integrity bodies and strikes a balance between the need to protect individual rights, and the need to prevent and target wrongdoing at the Commonwealth level.

The Morrison government will continue to ensure the highest level of integrity within the Commonwealth public sector. I know that the JCPAA will also continue its work in upholding the independence of the ANAO and, through the 10-year review process, look to strengthen existing governance frameworks to facilitate the important work of the Auditor-General and the ANAO. I look forward to working with the member for Bruce on this very important inquiry.

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