Page 762 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 1 May 2007
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Treasury continues to provide the most comprehensive quarterly reporting of any jurisdiction in Australia. The quarterly report provides the community with an analysis of the year-to-date net operating balance and financial position for the general government sector. The highlights section of the report provides the reader with an easy reference for the major events in the quarter and the context surrounding the territory’s year-to-date performance. The quarterly report also contains specific analysis of the year-to-date performance of the government in managing the territory’s single largest liability—superannuation, an area of keen interest to the community. There is also a breakdown of the year-to-date performance for each agency.
In summary, the financial management and accountability framework in the territory is robust and sound. As I mentioned earlier, it is an important matter and the government has made a range of improvements in the legislative and administrative arrangements to further improve accountability. Since my government was elected, a number of amendments have been made to the Financial Management Act to ensure it remains strong and effective in regulating the conduct of the territory’s fiscal operations. The amendments reflect the continuing need to pursue optimal procedural and legislative standards.
Currently before the Assembly is a bill to allow the effective administration of the cash management framework as announced in 2006-07 budget. As part of the 2006-07 budget, the government announced that cash management across ACT government agencies would be reformed to strengthen transparency and accountability and to ensure that cash balances are used more effectively.
In August 2005 the government introduced extensive changes to the FMA, standardising the governance requirements for most territory authorities. The legislative changes were aimed at clarifying the roles and responsibilities of the board of management and the chief executive officer, specifying the process of board appointments, providing clear guidance for addressing conflicts of interest and disclosures, requiring territory authorities to operate in a manner consistent with government policies, and specifying improved financial planning and reporting requirements.
The amendments passed in 2005 also incorporated substantial changes to enhance departmental financial and performance reporting arrangements. These include the incorporation of strategic indicators for government departments, in addition to the usual accountability indicators. The FMA provisions on the Treasurer’s advance were strengthened in 2004 to restrict use of the Treasurer’s advance to urgent expenditure, clarify the term “expenditure” and improve the timeliness for reporting Treasurer’s advance approvals.
In 2003 the government introduced substantial changes to the FMA in relation to territory budget reporting. The amendments introduced the requirement for the territory budget to be prepared taking into account the principles of responsible fiscal management, the object of providing a basis for sustainable social and economic services and infrastructure fairly to all residents, and the object of ecologically sustainable development. The amendments also introduced the requirement for the
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