Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

The Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities has provided the following answer to the honourable senator’s question:

(1) (a) The original 1.5 per cent efficiency dividend equates to a total of $6.8m in 2012-13; (b) The additional 2.5 per cent efficiency dividend equates to $10.4m in 2012-13; (c) the department did not have any additional departmental savings measures introduced in the 2012-13 Budget papers.

(2) As part of the normal ongoing budgetary practices, all areas of expenditure and processes are under continual review. This includes reviewing discretionary areas of expenditure, looking for process improvements through the use of technology, identifying key priority areas of business and lower priority functions that can be scaled back or ceased and identifying efficiencies through implementing broad structural/organisational changes, for example, by reducing the number of Deputy Secretaries from four to three.

The Executive has also commissioned a more detailed review of its cost base at an activity level to further develop the evidence base on which to make decisions on the allocation of departmental resources and priorities.

In addition to identification of costs savings and efficiencies the department also looks for ways to further improve productivity and increase performance, for example the department was one of the first agencies to be subject to a "Capability Review”, the outcome of which has resulted in a range of projects aimed at increasing the agencies capability and performance over the coming year. The outcomes of this project and other internal performance improvements will assist in delivering increased efficiencies in business outcomes.

(3) In 2012-13, 44 per cent of the departments total expense budget is allocated to employee expenses.

(4) Management of the department’s budget is undertaken on a holistic basis i.e. including all aspects of expenditure. With respect to staffing levels the department continually reviews its staffing levels to ensure that it is using its resources appropriately and efficiently. The department is closely managing its recruitment of staff to ensure staffing levels can be managed within budgetary constraints. The use of natural attrition and internal redployment assist in meeting budgetary targets. The department’s ongoing employee initiated separation rate was 10.3 per cent as at 31 August 2012.

The department also continually examines all areas of discretionary spending, including consultants and contractors. Given the diversity of the department’s operations, it is not possible to identify a quantitative reduction for each of these specific items.

(5) As outlined above the department is tightly managing its recruitment processes to ensure that current staffing resources can be utilised in the most effective manner. Based on current planning and estimates a general redundancy program across the department is not planned for 2012-13. If specific roles are no longer required, the department will undertake all appropriate redeployment and/or redundancy processes in accordance with the agency’s enterprise agreement.

(6) The current distribution is detailed in the following table.