Page 2810 - Week 07 - Thursday, 7 June 2012
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Annual reports are the principal and most authoritative way in which chief executives and chairpersons account to the Legislative Assembly and other stakeholders, including the public, for the ways in which they have discharged their statutory and other authorities and utilised public funds over the preceding 12 months. The provision of meaningful operational and financial information by government to parliament and the public is a fundamental component of the accountability process.
On 22 September 2011 the Assembly resolved to refer the annual and financial reports of all government agencies for the calendar year 2011 and the financial year 2010-11 to the relevant standing committees. The Assembly referred the annual and financial reports of the following 16 agencies to the public accounts committee: the ACT Auditor-General’s Office, ACT Gambling and Racing Commission, ACT Government Procurement Board, ACT Insurance Authority, ACT Legislative Assembly Secretariat, ACT Long Service Leave Authority, Actew Corporation Ltd, ACTTAB Ltd, Chief Minister and Cabinet Directorate, Commissioner for Public Administration, Economic Development Directorate, Exhibition Park Corporation, Independent Competition and Regulatory Commission, Rhodium Asset Solutions, Totalcare Industries, and Treasury Directorate.
The committee held public hearings on 3, 21, 24 and 29 November and 16 December 2011. At these public hearings the committee heard from ministers, accompanying directorate and agency officers and members of governing boards.
The committee examined the annual and financial reports in relation to their compliance, where relevant, with the following legislation: Annual Reports (Government Agencies) Act 2004, Chief Minister’s Annual Report Directions 2010-11, Financial Management Act 1996 and Territory-owned Corporations Act 1990.
In reporting, the committee considered the issues raised in the annual reports with regard to accountability, governance and effective reporting by public sector agencies. The committee report includes discussion of significant issues raised during the inquiry process and makes 10 recommendations.
As 2012 is an election year, I recognise that opportunities for the government to respond to the committee’s recommendations are limited. If the government is not able to respond by the end of the Assembly’s August sittings, I encourage it to consider presenting its response out of session.
I also recognise that in previous years the government has waited until all standing committees have presented their reports on annual and financial reports and then provided a single response to the Assembly. In an election year it is possible that this approach will mean that no government response is provided before the caretaker period commences. As a means of avoiding this circumstance, I urge the government to consider departing from its normal practice by preparing responses to specific standing committee reports as they are presented to the Assembly.
I would like to conclude by thanking my committee colleagues Brendan Smyth and John Hargreaves, relevant ministers and accompanying directorate and agency staff,
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