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Annual Report 2001–02Performance ReviewOutput Group 2 Committee Services
DescriptionThe Committee Services Output Group is supported primarily by the departments Committee Office. The services comprise the provision of advice and administrative, research and analytical services to parliamentary committees. Advice includes advice on parliamentary procedure, matters of policy and administrative matters. Administrative, research and analytical services range from meeting arrangements through to the analysis of complex written and oral evidence and the preparation of associated briefing documents and committee reports. Committees meet regularly in Canberra during sitting weeks, and they and their secretariats travel throughout Australia to conduct inspections and hearings. Prior to the dissolution of the House of Representatives, the Committee Office supported the work of 18 House and joint committees. These are listed in Table 3. One of the joint committees, the Joint Select Committee on the Intelligence Services, was supported for a specific purpose and a limited period. In addition, five House committees and a joint committee whose functions are concerned with the powers and procedures of the House are supported through Output Group 1 Chamber and Main Committee.
With the dissolution of the House of Representatives on 8 October 2001, all committee memberships ceased. The focus of the Committee Office shifted to tasks and activities aimed at improving the offices overall capacity to support parliamentary committees and to achieve departmental corporate objectives. House and joint committees of the Fortieth Parliament were established in February and March 2002 and Members of the House of Representatives had been appointed to those committees by the last sitting week in March. Table 4 shows the 21 committees supported by the Committee Office from the commencement of the Parliament through to 30 June 2002.
Actual expenses for the provision of these services for this output were $6.89 million, while the budget allocated was $7.21 million. A summary of the financial resources for the output group is provided at Table 1.
PerformanceThe nature of the work performed by the Committee Office varied during the year. Figure 7 illustrates that variation. [go to text version of figure] The final months of the Thirty-ninth Parliament saw the Committee Office primarily supporting committees in completing their inquiries: that is, in the drafting and consideration of reports and the tabling of reports. Reports tabled in this period are listed in Appendix 4. In addition, many Committee Office staff were actively involved in the organisation and support of a number of conferences hosted by the Parliament or by individual committees. Following the dissolution of the House of Representatives on 8 October 2001, the Committee Office commenced a number of projects aimed at improving the support given to parliamentary committees. Examples included a review of secretariat staffing, benchmarking of committee support activities, development of guides for members and their staff about parliamentary committees, updating of the departments Committee Procedure and Practice Manual, development of a manual for departmental administrative staff, reviewing of performance information, and undertaking of a major archiving effort. During the period October 2001February 2002, nine staff from the Committee Office undertook placements, ranging from a month to three months, with organisations in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. The placements provided an opportunity for the individual staff members to gain experience in policy areas relevant to their committee work and to acquire knowledge and develop skills relevant to the support of parliamentary committees. From December 2001 to February 2002, there was some recruitment of committee research staff in preparation for the Fortieth Parliament. The level of staffing resources had been managed down over the financial year, consistent with the parliamentary cycle. From February to June 2002 the Committee Office was fully occupied in supporting the work of the committees of the Fortieth Parliament. As Tables 3 and 4 show, there was a net increase of four continuing committees supported by the Committee Office, bringing the total to 21. Given no additional funding for the four new committees, the Committee Office implemented a revised staff structure, with most secretariats supporting two or three committees each. Table 5 provides a summary of the outputs performance for the financial year. Table 5 Performance summary, Output Group 2(a)
(a) Excludes joint committees supported by the Department of the
Senate and House internal committees.
Improving performanceThe period between parliaments from October 2001 to February 2002 provided an opportunity for the Committee Office to review and identify ways to improve its performance. A number of projects were undertaken to this effect, as previously mentioned. For example, a review of secretariat staffing structures considered the performance and effectiveness of shared secretariats: that is, secretariats supporting two or more committees. The findings of the review have provided a basis for the staffing structure in the Fortieth Parliament. During the same period some preliminary work was undertaken to improve the effectiveness of committee advertising. This included the secondment of a committee secretary to the departments advertising company, Starcom Worldwide. Against a background of limited resources, secretariats continue to look for more cost-effective means of informing the wider community about parliamentary inquiries. As part of this, secretariats have started to assess formally the effectiveness of their newspaper advertising. Since early 2002 secretariats have been equipped with new information technology equipment, including multifunction scanner/copier/printer devices and improved capacity workstations. That equipment will provide a basis for productivity increases in the production of committee documentation and the support of committee inquiries. For example, scanner technology now means all submissions, including handwritten submissions, can be quickly made available on committees websites. Training on furthering the use of HouseNet, the departments intranet, will also allow secretariat staff to improve the dissemination of information to members of committees. This years redesign and enhancement of the Parliaments website will continue to contribute to improved performance. For example, changes to the website are enabling the more effective publication of information about committees. There is also scope to increase productivity through the use of analytical software tools, such as ISYS text retrieval. In the spirit of continuous improvement, procedure and practice seminars will continue to be held throughout the year with a view to sharing ideas and improving service delivery to parliamentary committees.
OutlookDuring the latter part of the financial year newly established committees advertised new inquiries, inviting submissions. Most committees normally allow six to eight weeks for the receipt of submissions; the first few months of 200203 will therefore see many committees examining submissions and conducting inspections and public hearings. That time will present challenges in terms of the increased number of committees being supported by the Committee Office with limited resources. From the commencement of the Fortieth Parliament, committee secretaries have had greater responsibility for managing global budgets, including both administrative and staffing expenditure. This should give committee secretaries greater flexibility in employing research and administrative staff. The success of this new approach will need to be monitored and reviewed carefully in the next financial year. The forthcoming year will provide an opportunity for the Committee Office to survey committee members to assess their levels of satisfaction with committee support services. Linked to this will be an assessment of performance against standards set out in the departments new service charters. Performance measures for the next year have been altered to reflect the new support arrangements, and committee secretariats will be measured on team performance as well as individual performance. Instead of ascertaining the number of meetings, we will measure the achievement of particular targets; for example, the completion of inquiries within agreed budgetary allocations. Archiving of committee records will continue as a matter of priority. We will continue to conduct a range of activities aimed at promoting the Parliament in the community. For example, staff will make presentations on the role and work of parliamentary committees to schools, universities and other community organisations.
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