The Secretary, as the accountable authority under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability ACT 2013 (PGPA Act) has a duty to manage DPS in a way that promotes the:

• proper use and management of public resources for which DPS is responsible
• achievement of the purposes of the entity, and
• financial sustainability of the entity.

The Secretary delegates some powers to certain staff. These are outlined in DPS’ financial and human resource delegations. In addition, the Secretary has established an organisational structure that clearly defines accountabilities and the areas of responsibility assigned to senior DPS staff.

The Parliamentary Library’s services are established under the statutory office of the Parliamentary Librarian whose primary function is ‘to provide high quality information, analysis and advice to senators and members of the House of Representatives in support of their parliamentary and representational roles’.⁵² The Secretary of DPS provides resources to the Parliamentary Librarian in accordance with an annual agreement. The Parliamentary Librarian reports directly to the Presiding Officers and to the Parliament. She also reports to the Joint Standing Committee on the Parliamentary Library (JSCPL).

Our governance structure for the reporting period is set out in Figure 15. It contains two streams, committees and boards advising the Presiding Officers and committees advising the Secretary. These are discussed in more detail below.

Figure 15: DPS Governance Structure

Committees advising the Presiding Officers

The information below shows committee membership at 30 June 2017 and activity for the year.

Joint House Committee

The Joint House Committee comprised members of the House Committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Its role was to consider matters which affect joint services.

Chair: Senator the Hon Stephen Parry (The President of the Senate) and The Hon Tony Smith MP (The Speaker of the House of Representatives)

Members:

• Senator Carol Brown
• Senator David Bushby
• Senator the Hon Jacinta Collins
• Senator David Fawcett
• Mr Chris Hayes MP
• Senator Sue Lines
• Ms Nola Marino MP
• Mr Graham Perrett MP
• Mr Rowan Ramsey MP
• Ms Joanne Ryan MP
• Senator Anne Urquhart
• Mr Bert van Manen MP

As senior Presiding Officer at 30 June 2017 the President of the Senate was chair.

The committee met two times in 2016–17.

Joint Standing Committee on the Parliamentary Library (JSCPL)

Details on the JSCPL can be found in Part 5—Parliamentary Library: Overview.

Art Advisory Committee

The Art Advisory Committee assists the Presiding Officers in determining the suitability of art works for addition to the Rotational Collection within the Parliament House Art Collection.

Chair: Senator the Hon Stephen Parry (The President of the Senate) and The Hon Tony Smith MP (The Speaker of the House of Representatives)

Members: Deputy President, Deputy Speaker, Secretary DPS and an independent adviser from the National Gallery of Australia.

The committee’s terms of reference are to:

• provide guidance on the Rotational Collection Acquisition Policy, and set short-term priorities for acquisitions
• assess acquisition proposals in accordance with the acquisition policy and collecting priorities, and
• provide advice on other matters relating to the display and management of artworks in the collection, as considered necessary by the Presiding Officers.

Matters considered included:

• the purchase of 57 works of art including four artworks to commemorate the Centenary of ANZAC
• the consideration of a number of gifts offered to the collection, and
• the development of a new policy framework for the management of the collection.

The committee met twice during 2016–17, in October 2016 and March 2017.

Parliamentary Information and Communication Technology Advisory Board (PICTAB)

PICTAB is an advisory body established in 2012. Its role is to provide guidance in the development and delivery of the Parliament of Australia ICT Strategic Plan, strategic objectives and outcomes. Following the commencement of the 45th Parliament, the Presiding Officers approved an increase to the number of parliamentarian members of PICTAB in 2017 from three to nine.

Chair: Secretary DPS

The membership of PICTAB is comprised of:

• three representatives each from the Government, Opposition and Crossbench
• one representative each from the Department of the Senate, the Department of the House of Representatives, the Parliamentary Budget Office and the Parliamentary Service Commissioner; and
• in addition, four non-member representatives from the DPS Information Services Division.

The board met twice in 2016–17. Matters considered included:

• the key needs of parliamentarians
• the video conferencing solution for committees and its suitability for use in electorate offices
• using secure cloud computing to deliver electorate office ICT for parliamentarians
• feedback on the ParlWork application
• network security enhancements, and
• sound reinforcement and audio delivery in the parliamentary chambers.

Security Management Board (SMB)

The SMB was formally established in 2005 under Section 65A of the PS Act. The function of the SMB is to provide specialist security advice and support to the Presiding Officers on security policy and the management of security measures for Parliament House.

Chair: Secretary DPS

Members: Usher of the Black Rod, Serjeant-at-Arms, and Deputy Commissioner Australian Federal Police.

Invited attendees: Department of the Prime Minister & Cabinet (PM&C), Department of Finance (DoF), Attorney-General’s Department (AGD).

The board met six times in 2016–17.

Historic Memorials Committee (HMC)

The HMC was established by Prime Minister Andrew Fisher in 1911. The function of the committee is to commission official portraits of the Head of State, Governors-General, Prime Ministers, Presidents of the Senate and Speakers of the House of Representatives. From time to time the committee may also elect to commission portraits of other significant parliamentarians who represent a milestone in the history of the Parliament. On occasion the committee may also commission paintings of significant events in the history of the Australian Parliament.

Chair: Prime Minister

Members: the Leader of the Opposition, the Vice-President of the Executive Council, the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

The Secretary DPS is secretary to the committee and the DPS Art Collection & Exhibitions section provides secretariat services to the committee and manages the portrait commissioning process.

In 2016–2017 the HMC conducted all relevant business via correspondence.

Committees advising the Secretary

Under the PS Act and the PGPA Act, the Secretary is accountable for DPS’ performance and compliance. The Secretary is assisted in the management of these responsibilities by the Executive Committee and the Audit Committee.

Executive Committee

The Executive Committee considers the development and implementation of the DPS governance framework and associated strategies, including financial planning and budgeting, performance, risk management, business planning and organisation issues and other matters relating to the management of the department.

The Executive Committee is chaired by the Secretary and its members are the Parliamentary Librarian, division heads and Chief Finance Officer. The committee meets fortnightly.

Audit Committee

The DPS Audit Committee provides independent advice and assurance to the Secretary on DPS’ financial and performance reporting responsibilities, system of risk oversight, and systems of internal control and compliance.

The Audit Committee comprises five members, three independent members and two management appointed DPS officials. In 2016–17, the committee members were Mr Michael Harris (independent chair), Ms Jenny Morison (independent deputy chair), Mr Richard Windeyer (independent member), Mr Paul Cooper (DPS official) and Mr Jonathan Curtis (DPS official).

Representatives of the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) and DPS’ contracted internal auditors, KPMG, attend DPS Audit Committee meetings to provide information and advice to committee members. Information and advice is also regularly provided by invited DPS officials, including the Chief Operating Officer (COO), the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Chief Finance Officer (CFO).

In 2016–17, the committee met five times including a meeting to consider the department’s financial and performance statements. Table 33 shows the members’ attendance for 2016–17.

Table 33: Audit Committee attendance

Member	Meeting attendance
Mr Michael Harris—Chair	5/5
Ms Jenny Morison—Deputy Chair	4/5
Mr Richard Windeyer—Independent Member	4/5
Mr Paul Cooper—DPS Official	5/5
Mr Jonathan Curtis—DPS Official	4/5

The Secretary is also assisted in his management of the department by the following committees:

DPS Work Health and Safety (WHS) Committee

The WHS Committee operates in accordance with the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (WHS Act), to advise the Secretary on WHS policy matters concerning our employees and other parties, and to assist in the development and review of related policies and practices.

It is chaired by an Assistant Secretary and its membership is made up of one management representative from the Parliamentary Library, one from each of the other branches and one Health and Safety Representative (HSR) from each branch, with the exception of Building Services Branch where there is provision for two HSRs. The committee meets once each quarter.

DPS Consultative Forum

The role of the DPS Consultative Forum is to provide a forum for consultation and discussion between management, staff and unions representing staff. The forum is chaired by the Chief Operating Officer and its membership consists of management representatives, union representatives and staff representatives as provided for in the enterprise agreement. The forum met four times in 2016–17.

Our internal audit arrangements

Primary responsibility for departmental internal audit functions rests with the Head of Internal Audit (HIA), the Assistant Secretary, People and Governance Branch. The HIA manages the provision of independent assurance to the Secretary and Executive Committee, through the Audit Committee, that internal controls designed to manage significant operational or financial risks and achieve the department’s objectives are operating in an efficient, effective and ethical manner. The HIA also implements the annual internal audit program endorsed by the Audit Committee and approved by the Secretary. The focus of the annual internal audit program is to assist the department in managing operational or financial risks and to provide assurance as to whether key projects, systems and governance structures are operating as intended. The implementation of recommendations from the internal audit program are regularly reported to the Executive Committee and the Audit Committee. The internal audit work plan is reviewed for relevance and applicability by the Audit Committee at the mid-year point, and any subsequent amendments are recommended to the Secretary for approval. The HIA also manages liaison with the ANAO as the external auditor.

Under its outsourced service delivery model, DPS has engaged KPMG to provide internal audit services. During 2016–17, the internal audit program was delivered in line with the annual internal audit plan.

Our planning and reporting framework

DPS continues to strengthen its internal planning, processes and controls to support broader corporate planning requirements. The 2016–17 Corporate Plan is based on the commitments DPS made in the Portfolio Budget Statement (PBS) for 2016–17, including Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), measures and targets. In accordance with the PGPA Act, DPS has developed a 2017–18 Corporate Plan which outlines our purpose and provides clear direction on how DPS intends to achieve that purpose.

The corporate plan sets out DPS’ strategic themes, objectives and strategies which we use to guide our decision making and our activities over the next four years. DPS aligned the 2016–17 Corporate Plan with the 2016–17 PBS through DPS’ outcome statement, objectives and deliverables. The corporate plan is underpinned by branch business plans, outlining how each branch will contribute to the achievement of DPS’ purpose. These key documents can then be linked to individual work plans which clearly articulate expectations of managers in contributing to the achievement of our purpose in the corporate plan.

Figure 16: DPS Planning Framework

How to manage risks

It is important that DPS has a strong risk management framework. We are committed to an environment where all employees understand, and are able to successfully manage risk. As DPS is faced with a constantly changing and challenging environment, it is vital that staff continue to identify and engage with risk.

Collectively, the set of policies, processes and structures through which DPS manages risk is called the DPSRisk Management Framework (see Figure 17). It enables DPS to demonstrate that a systematic and comprehensive process is in place to ensure that DPS manages risks effectively. The DPS Risk Management Policy and DPS Risk Management Toolkit continue to be promoted throughout DPS.

The People and Governance Branch supports staff in managing risks across DPS including enterprise, fraud, operational and specialist risks.

Figure 17: DPS Risk Management Framework

Enterprise and fraud risks

Following a review of enterprise and fraud risks in June 2015, the Enterprise and Fraud Risk Treatment Plans have been managed through an executive reporting process. This process includes the Risk and Business Continuity Management Forum in which members work with treatment owners to provide quarterly updates to the Executive Committee on the progress of enterprise and fraud risk treatments.

In July 2016 DPS implemented a risk management software system, Riskware, to capture, manage, monitor and analyse our enterprise and fraud risks. This system enables DPS to continue to further improve our risk management practises.

In April 2017, DPS commenced the biennial review of our enterprise and fraud risks, which will be completed in 2017–18.

Operational risks

During each branch business planning cycle a risk assessment is integrated into the planning process to ensure that risk management is embedded in business as usual activities and to further build risk management capability within DPS.

Risk and Business Continuity Management Forum

The Risk and Business Continuity Management Forum, established in November 2015, meets on a quarterly basis in alignment with quarterly risk reporting to the Executive Committee. The forum is chaired by a DPS SES officer with members from across the department. The Risk and Business Continuity Management Forum is designed to support the ongoing development of DPS’ risk and business continuity management practices.

Comcover Risk Management Benchmarking Survey

DPS participated in the Comcover 2017 Risk Management Benchmarking Survey. This survey measures Commonwealth agencies’ risk management capability maturity over the nine elements contained in the Commonwealth Risk Management Policy. DPS achieved an overall maturity rating of ‘Advanced’, which is above the Commonwealth average of ‘Integrated’ and is also above the ‘Integrated’ result achieved by DPS in 2016. This shift to a higher overall risk maturity indicates that DPS has made positive progress in building our risk management capability over the past year.

Business Continuity Management

Throughout 2016–17, DPS progressed the implementation of its Business Continuity Management framework, including:

• facilitating exercises in August 2016 of the Strategic Executive Response Plan and Tactical Executive Response Plan involving the department’s senior executive and observers from the other parliamentary departments
• updating the Business Continuity Management Policy and Framework, Strategic Executive Response Plan and Tactical Executive Response Plan to incorporate lessons from the exercises. These documents were then endorsed by the Secretary in November 2016
• developing the Crisis Communications Framework for communicating with staff and stakeholders during a business disruption, and
• continued development of individual business recovery procedures and other associated documents.

In 2017–18, DPS plans to further develop its Business Continuity Management framework through a program of exercises and continuous improvement.

How to prevent fraud

DPS is committed to ensuring compliance with section 10 of the PGPA Rule.

The department’s established fraud control framework was developed in accordance with the Commonwealth Fraud Control Framework 2014 and is reviewed every two years.

The Fraud Control Plan 2015–17 provides the framework for detecting, reporting and investigating fraud within the department. The department reviews the fraud risks and treatment plans regularly through the Enterprise Risk Management Plan.

Fraud awareness training is mandatory for all DPS staff and is available on the DPS Learning Management system. As at 30 June 2017, a total of 813 (83 per cent) of DPS staff have completed their training, In 2016–17, 246 DPS staff completed this training,

Ethical standards and behaviours

DPS is committed to the standards of integrity, good governance and ethical practices set out in the PS Act and the Parliamentary Service Values, Employment Principles and Code of Conduct.

DPS takes all alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct seriously and manages these in accordance with best practice. The majority of complaints received were handled through local management action or preliminary investigation. The department finalised four Code of Conduct investigations during 2016–17 resulting in the determination of two breaches of the Code of Conduct.

Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013

The Commonwealth’s Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 (PID Act) promotes integrity and accountability in the Australian public sector by encouraging the disclosure of information about suspected wrongdoing, protecting people who make disclosures and requiring departments and entities to take action.

DPS continues to provide readily accessible information to staff about the PID Act, including links to information provided by the Commonwealth Ombudsman, available via the department’s intranet.

In 2016–17 there were five DPS Authorised Officers approved to handle public interest disclosures.

Statement of significant non-compliance with the finance law

In 2016–17, DPS has not reported any significant issues to the Presiding Officers under paragraph 19(1)(e) of the PGPA that relate to non-compliance with the finance law in relation to DPS.