The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has today tabled its report for the Inquiry into Policy and Program Design and Implementation.

Media release issue date: Monday, 4 November 2024

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has today tabled its report for the Inquiry into Policy and Program Design and Implementation. Committee Chair Linda Burney commented that specific recurring issues identified in the Auditor-General reports included in the inquiry appear to be impacting the effectiveness of government policy and program design, including inadequate stakeholder engagement, a lack of effective performance measures, and deficiencies in the advice to government. Ms Burney stated that ‘ineffective decision-making and a departure from best practice resulted in some common issues across the audits examined by the Committee, even though they involved very different programs’, further commenting that ‘this inquiry has highlighted that Commonwealth entities must remain vigilant in ensuring that they continue to meet best practice requirements when designing and implementing policies and programs for the benefit of the Australian public.’ The Committee has made 11 recommendations in this report which include requests for progress updates from audited entities on a variety of issues including stakeholder engagement planning, legislative changes, and information management processes. The Committee has also recommended that the Australian Government prioritises legislation that aligns the Health Insurance Act with the modern technological requirements of telehealth and that reforms the existing partner and child family visa programs to make them truly demand driven. The report can be downloaded from the inquiry website. Media inquiries Hon Linda Burney MP, Chair of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit Electorate office: (02) 9587 1555 For background information Committee Secretariat 02 6277 4615 jcpaa@aph.gov.au For more information about this Committee, you can visit its website. On the site, you can make a submission to an inquiry, read other submissions, and get details for upcoming public hearings. You can also track the Committee and receive email updates by clicking on the blue ‘Track Committee’ button in the bottom right-hand corner of the page.

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit is holding public hearings which include the CEO of the NDIA , the Secretary of the Department of Health, and the first public hearings kicking off the new policy and program design and implementation inquiry.

Media release issue date: Monday, 29 January 2024

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) is holding public hearings this Thursday, 1 February and Friday, 2 February 2024 which include: The CEO of the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) appearing as part of the procurement at Services Australia and the National Disability Insurance Agency inquiry. The Secretary of the Department of Health is appearing for the inquiry into probity and ethics in the Australian public sector. The first public hearings kicking off the new policy and program design and implementation inquiry. The Chair of the Committee, Mr Julian Hill MP, highlighted the importance of starting the year strongly with the examination of the agencies involved in the current committee inquiries. “The Committee was concerned by evidence received last year in a public hearing with vendor Salesforce regarding procurement at the NDIA arising from the Watt Review. The CEO of the NDIA will appear so the Committee can examine issues arising, to the extent possible, while further internal investigations continue,” said Mr Hill. “The Secretary of the Department of Health will appear to explore issues arising from the Department of Health’s earlier appearance in 2023, and the subsequent hearing with the Australian Government Solicitor.” “The Committee will kick-off public hearings in the program and policy design implementation inquiry to investigate serious findings across the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), Home Affairs, Treasury, Agriculture, Education and Health and Aged Care to understand the larger issues at play.” For context, these first public hearings for the policy and program design and implementation inquiry will include: Thursday A roundtable with the ATO, the Department of Home Affairs, and the Department of the Treasury will appear to examine the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) report No. 39 of 2022–23 Implementation of the Government Response to the Black Economy Taskforce report. The Department of Home Affairs will appear to discuss the ANAO report No. 16 of 2022–23 Management of Migration to Australia—Family Migration Program report. Friday The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry will appear to examine the following reports: ANAO report No. 6 of 2022–23 Implementation of the Export Control Legislative Framework report; and ANAO report No. 17 of 2022–23 Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry’s cultural reform report. The Department of Education will appear to examine the ANAO report No. 42 of 2022–23 Access and Participation Programs for Regional and Remote Students report. The Department of Health and Aged Care will appear to examine the ANAO report No. 10 of 2022–23 Expansion of Telehealth Services report. Public hearing details Date:              Thursday 1 February 2024 Time:             1.00pm–5.00pm (AEDT) Venue:           Committee Room 2R1, Parliament House, Canberra Date:              Friday 2 February 2024 Time:              9.15am–3.00pm (AEDT) Venue:           Committee Room 2R1, Parliament House, Canberra Media inquiries For all media enquiries, please contact Laura Hooper on (03) 9791 7770, or via email: Laura.Hooper@aph.gov.au. For background information Committee Secretariat 02 6277 4615 jcpaa@aph.gov.au For more information about this Committee, you can visit its website. On the site, you can make a submission to an inquiry, read other submissions, and get details for upcoming public hearings. You can also track the Committee and receive email updates by clicking on the blue ‘Track this Committee’ button in the bottom right-hand corner of the page.