Chapter 3


3.1        This chapter considers the Australian Crime Commission's (ACC) performance against the outcomes found in the Portfolio Budget Statements (PBS) and the ACC's Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). It examines the measurement tools utilised to inform the KPIs and to track performance over time. The committee notes that 2014-15 marks the second year of the assessment of the ACC's work against the current KPIs.

Portfolio Budget Statements

3.2        The ACC is required, by the Attorney-General Department's PBS, to contribute to outcomes (intended results, impacts or consequences of actions by the government on the Australian community):

Commonwealth programmes are the primary vehicle by which government agencies achieve the intended results of their outcome statements. Agencies are required to identify the programmes that contribute to government outcomes over the budget and forward years.[1]

Outcome 1

3.3        The PBS states that the ACC's outcome requires:

Reduced serious and organised crime threats of most harm to Australians and the national interest including through providing the ability to understand, discover and respond to such threats.[2]

3.4        The PBS notes the ACC's approach to this outcome:

The ACC’s strategic approach of discovering new and emerging threats, understanding them more deeply, prioritising against the highest threat and initiating preventative or disruptive responses with its partners, will direct the allocation of resources and ACC capabilities to the serious and organised crime threats of most harm to Australians and the national interest. Core elements of this strategy include providing national strategic advice on serious and organised crime threats and coordinating and participating in national responses with its partners. A highly developed understanding of the threats posed by serious and organised crime will underpin the ACC’s provision of specialised criminal intelligence capabilities and will focus response strategies on targets that pose the highest risk to Australians. The ACC will specifically focus on two core areas—building capability and working with partners—to deliver its outcomes and guide internal strategy development.[3]

Key Performance Indicators

3.5        This is the second year that the ACC has reported on the current KPIs. As noted in the 2013–14 annual report, the ACC expects 'to further develop our ability to capture and report on our performance in both qualitative and quantitative terms and to build relevant comparisons over the coming years'.[4]

3.6        These KPIs align with the performance framework outlined in the ACC's Strategic Plan 2013–18.[5]

3.7        Due to the current KPI's now having data for the second year running, the ACC has been able to provide comparative data in the 2014–15 annual report. The information is presented clearly, with a number of insightful qualitative and quantitative analyses.  

3.8        The changes found in the two most recent annual reports are in response to the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) report titled Development and Implementation of Key Performance Indicators to Support the Outcomes and Programs Framework. This report emphasised the importance of an 'appropriate mix of qualitative and quantitative KPIs including targets against which progress towards program objectives could be assessed'.[6] The ANAO noted that a tendency to rely on qualitative KPIs reduces the ability of an agency to measure the results of program activities over time. Whereas, '[a] mix of effectiveness KPIs, that place greater emphasis on quantitative KPIs and targets, would provide a more measurable basis for performance assessment'.[7]

3.9        The ACC has clearly addressed the ANAO's recommendations.

3.10      The key performance indicators for 2014–15 are that the ACC:

  • produces useful intelligence that identifies and provides insights on new and emerging serious and organised crime threats;
  • fills intelligence gaps through the identification of vulnerabilities and indicators of serious and organised crime;
  • collects and maintains national intelligence holdings of serious and organised crime threats and targets;
  • interprets and analyses national holdings to create a national serious and organised crime intelligence picture;
  • informs and influences hardening of the environment against serious and organised crime;
  • influences or enables the disruption, disabling or dismantling of serious and organised crime; and
  • participates in or coordinates collaboration in joint investigations and operations to prevent and disrupt serious and organised crime.[8]

3.11      As in previous years, the ACC falls within Program 1.1.1 of the broader Attorney-General’s PBS 2014–15.[9] The committee has not reproduced all of the measures within each KPI, but has selected notable highlights that are demonstrative of the ACC's work and effectiveness against each KPI.

KPI 1 – Producing useful intelligence that identifies and provides insights on serious and organised crime

3.12      The first KPI requires the ACC to produce useful intelligence that can identify and provide insight on new and emerging serious and organised crime threats.[10] The ACC has worked towards this KPI through numerous achievements, including:

  • the identification of 61 new targets for the National Criminal Target List (29 provided by the ACC); and
  • identifying and producing intelligence on money laundering syndicates, precursor chemicals, illicit firearms and criminal exploitation of digital currencies.[11]

3.13      The annual report notes that 88 per cent of stakeholders agreed or strongly agreed that the ACC achieved this KPI.[12] This is a 5 per cent reduction from the last reporting period (93 per cent).[13]

KPI 2 – Fills intelligence gaps through the identification of vulnerabilities and indicators of serious and organised crime

3.14      KPI 2 requires the ACC to fill intelligence gaps through the identification of vulnerabilities and indicators of serious and organised crime.[14] The ACC worked towards this KPI by:

  • supplying 79 intelligence reports on foreign fighters and counter terrorism; and
  • providing 4333 real time alerts on nationally significant crime targets.[15]

3.15      The annual report notes that 78 per cent of the ACC's stakeholder survey respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the ACC achieved this KPI.[16] It was 89 per cent in 2013–14.[17]

KPI 3 – Collects and maintains national holdings of serious and organised crime threats and targets

3.16      KPI 3 requires the ACC to collect and maintain national holdings of serious and organised crime threats and targets.[18] The ACC worked towards this KPI through:

  • maintaining the National Criminal Target List and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Database and conducting 176 coercive examinations;
  • maintaining 1.8 million firearm transaction records and responding to 540 firearm trace requests;
  • producing over 450 intelligence reports on outlawed motorcycle gangs that were provided to over 70 agencies to support multiple investigations; and
  • administering the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network.

3.17      The annual report notes that 91 per cent (96 per cent in 2013–14) of respondents to the ACC's stakeholder survey agreed or strongly agreed that the ACC met this KPI.[19]

KPI 4 – Interprets and analyses national holdings to create a national serious and organised crime intelligence picture.

3.18      KPI 4 requires the ACC to interpret and analyse its data to create intelligence products for the wider law enforcement community, including the Organised Crime Risk Assessment and the Illicit Drugs Data Report, both of which are discussed in further detail in chapter 4. Additionally, the ACC worked towards this KPI through its production of numerous products, including:

  • strategic assessments of illicit tobacco, the MDMA market, the movement of illicit funds, and the business structures and illegal business practices of criminal groups; and
  • sharing 2317 intelligence reports with 265 agencies.[20]

3.19      The annual report notes that 88 per cent (91 per cent in 2013–14)[21] of the ACC's stakeholders agreed or strongly agreed that the ACC had achieved KPI 4.[22]

KPI 5 – Informs and influences the hardening of the environment against serious and organised crime

3.20      KPI 5 requires the ACC to inform and influence the hardening of the environment against serious and organised crimes. The ACC contributed to this KPI in 2014–15 through:

  • contributing to the National Ice Taskforce;
  • providing intelligence on tax and secrecy haven jurisdictions that are being exploited by professional facilitators of criminal activity;
  • identifying vulnerabilities for organised crime groups to exploit processes to register a name change;
  • working with partners so that potentially harmful peptides and hormones became scheduled as 'prescription-only medicines'; and
  • strengthening preventative activities in relation child abuse and violence.[23]

3.21      The annual report notes that 78 per cent (83 per cent in 2013–14)[24] of stakeholders surveyed agreed or strongly agreed that the ACC had achieved KPI 5.[25]

KPI 6 – Influences or enables the disruption, disabling or dismantling of serious and organised crime

3.22      KPI 6 requires the ACC to influence or enable the disruption, disabling or dismantling of serious and organised crime.[26] In 2014–15 the ACC has:

  • disrupted 54 serious and organised criminal groups or networks;
  • seized $34.53 million in cash, $1.96 billion estimated street value of illicit drugs and more than $175.7 million precursor chemicals;
  • restrained more than $238.89 million in assets;
  • assisted in the issuing of $95.3 million tax assessments and the arrests of 194 people on 548 charges;
  • seized 18 firearms and referred 88 entities to the Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce with an estimated value of $80.81 million.[27]

3.23      The annual report notes that 83 per cent of respondents to the ACC's survey agreed or strongly agreed that the ACC had achieved KPI 6, a repeat of the previous year's results.[28]

KPI 7 – participates in or coordinates collaboration in joint operations and investigations to prevent and disrupt serious and organised crime

3.24      KPI 7 requires the ACC to participate in or coordinate collaboration in joint operations and investigations to prevent and disrupt serious and organised crime.[29] The ACC worked towards this KPI through its leadership or participation in:

  • the Eligo National Task Force (money laundering);
  • the Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (recovery of proceeds of crime)
  • operations that target outlawed motorcycle gangs/criminal gangs (Australian Gangs Intelligence Coordination Centre, Project Legion, Task Force Attero, and Task Force Morpheus);
  • operations targeting foreign fights and terrorists (Project Ridgeline and Project Advection);
  • Project Longstrike (detection of criminal wealth);
  • Project Astor (detection of criminal wealth);
  • Project Wickenby (tax fraud);
  • Project Sinis (migration fraud);
  • maritime task forces (operations to disrupt organised crime exploitation of the maritime sector in Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia);
  • Joint Organised Crime Task Forces/Groups (the disruption of jurisdictional and organised crime groups in Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia); and
  • Task Force Discover (vehicle theft in Victoria).[30]

3.25      The annual report notes that 85 per cent (91 per cent in 2013–14)[31] of the ACC's stakeholder respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the ACC had met KPI 7.[32]

Comparison of 2013–14 and 2014–15 results

3.26      As noted in paragraph 3.7, the ACC now has data to compare its performance scorecard between each reporting period. An analysis of this data by the ACC in its annual report provides a review of its qualitative and quantitative results, and an overall summary of the ACC's performance for each KPI. Data is primarily from the last two reporting periods; however, in some cases the ACC has included five-year trend data.[33]

3.27      All comparable quantitative results for each KPI include the ACC's stakeholder survey responses. The results from this survey for all but one KPI (KPI 6) are lower in 2014–15 than the last reporting period, albeit by small margins in most cases. The ACC comments that these results still indicate a strong performance result.

3.28      Where possible, the ACC has included other comparable quantitative results from 2013–14 and 2014–15. Key comparisons include: the number of targets added to the National Criminal Target List (KPI 1); responses to request for information from national and international partners (KPI 3); and the number of intelligence products (KPI 4).

3.29      Further, the ACC has provided a number of graphs with five year trend data on matters relating to KPI 6. For example, graphs show the number of disruptions to serious and organise crime, cash and casino chips seized, drugs and precursor chemicals seized and the seizure of firearms.

3.30      The ACC provides commentary on the qualitative results for the 2014–15 KPIs. Broadly, these comments include the expansion of existing activities and new performance measures (see KPI 3).

Committee view

3.31      The ACC annual report for 2014–15 shows a significant shift from primarily focusing on qualitative data, to include quantitative KPIs. This change has addressed the committee's concern and commentary that previous reports lacked quantitative KPIs. The committee congratulates the ACC for implementing this change.

3.32      Again, the committee acknowledges the ongoing complexity of the new qualitative KPIs the ACC has developed, and acknowledges that some of the ACC's work remains unquantifiable.

3.33      The committee is pleased that the ACC has maintained a high level of satisfaction expressed in its stakeholder survey, despite the results being slightly lower in this reporting period. Nonetheless, the results of these surveys provided valuable feedback to the ACC in developing and shaping its activities to meet the needs of its stakeholders.

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