The Speaker of the House of Representatives can be questioned by members about the work of the department. The Clerk of the House of Representatives, who is responsible for managing the department, reports to the Speaker.

The main elements of the department’s corporate governance framework are outlined below.

Legislation

During 2013–14, the department’s operations were governed by the Parliamentary Service Act 1999 and the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, and were subject to provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009 and other legislation. Those Acts set out the Clerk’s responsibilities for managing the department.

Ethical standards

The Parliamentary Service Values and Code of Conduct set out in the Parliamentary Service Act provide a framework for the department’s ethical conduct. The department actively promotes sound ethical behaviour. All staff who are new to the department are advised about what it means to work in a values-based environment and how ethical standards apply to their day-to-day work.

Senior management

Senior management of the department consists of the Executive and managers at the Executive  Band 2 level. The Executive comprises the Clerk of the House, the Deputy Clerk and three Senior Executive Service Band 1 staff—the Clerk Assistant (Committees), the Clerk Assistant (Table) and the  Serjeant-at-Arms—each of whom has management responsibility for one or more of the department’s offices(see Figure 1 in Departmental Overview).

In August 2013, the then Clerk advised the Speaker of his intention to retire on 31 December 2013.  A selection panel, led by the Parliamentary Service Commissioner, made a recommendation to the Speaker, which was accepted, to appoint Mr David Elder as Clerk of the House. In 2014, a selection process was conducted for the position of Deputy Clerk (in which Ms Claressa Surtees was selected) and for a Senior Executive Service Band 1 position (in which Ms Bronwyn Notzon was selected).

Management committees

Executive

The Executive conducted eight formal meetings during the year to discuss and resolve a wide range of departmental management issues. As well as standing items on finance and people strategies, matters addressed included:

• election period projects
• consolidation of ICT services
• amendments to the Parliamentary Service Act and subordinate legislation, and proposed new Commonwealth financial management legislation
• freedom of information and public interest disclosure legislation
• leadership training for departmental senior management, talent management and internal job rotation
• award modernisation
• business continuity planning
• length-of-service award pins for departmental staff
• the new corporate plan
• the annual members’ and staff surveys.

Staff were informed of the outcomes of each of the meetings through the staff bulletin, In House.

Audit Committee

The department’s Audit Committee met four times during the year. The committee comprises the Clerk Assistant (Table) (chair), the Serjeant-at-Arms, the Clerk Assistant (Committees), and an independent member. In 2013–14, the independent member was Mr Tom Rogers, the Deputy Electoral Commissioner. Representatives of the Australian National Audit Office and the department’s internal audit team, and the Chief Finance Officer, attended all meetings.

Internal audits during the year covered the following areas:

• the department’s project management framework
• business continuity planning and the development of a continuity framework.

In addition, the committee sought advice from the internal auditors in an assurance mapping exercise, as part of the preparations for the commencement of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 on 1 July 2014.

During the year, the committee updated the forward year internal audit plan. It reviewed the department’s draft financial statements from 2013–14, and recommended that the Clerk sign them. It also reviewed the Chief Finance Officer’s report on the certificate of compliance process, and recommended that the Clerk sign the certificate on the basis that the department’s compliance processes were satisfactory and that the department was financially sustainable—in the context of the
following financial year. The committee’s 2013 annual report was provided to the Clerk.

Consultative Committee

The Consultative Committee, which is chaired by the Deputy Clerk, continued to be an important mechanism for communicating and consulting with staff on workplace issues. The committee has four departmental representatives, two elected staff representatives and two union-nominated representatives.

The committee met seven times during 2013–14. Standing agenda items for the meetings included:

• implementation and monitoring of the enterprise agreement
• proposals for change and other developments affecting staff
• review of implemented changes
• reports on departmental activities.

Matters discussed during the year included the new service-level agreement with the Department of Parliamentary Services for ICT services, staff mobility, social media guidelines, award modernisation, the annual staff survey, the office furniture replacement project, and the status of ICT projects.p>

Planning and evaluation

Corporate plan

The Corporate Plan 2013–16 was provided to staff during the reporting period. It seeks to build on our capacity to serve our clients, develop our people, sustain our capability, and work collaboratively with each other and other key people and organisations.

Business plan

The department’s business plan for 2013–14 was issued in 2013. Progress on implementing the plan was monitored during the year through six-monthly and new quarterly reporting meetings. Good progress was made on reaching the targets set out in the plan.

Members' survey

The department receives periodic and ongoing feedback from members to gauge the effectiveness of its service provision.

In May and June 2014, the 2014 members’ survey was conducted. This was the eleventh annual survey, and followed the same format as in previous years.

The department surveyed a random sample of 30 members, 21 of whom responded (19 participated last year). All participants were asked whether they were satisfied with the advice, services and support they received from the department. The results confirmed that the department continues to provide a high standard of service.

Details of the survey findings are in Appendix 12.

Accountability mechanisms

The department’s main formal external accountability mechanisms are the Portfolio Budget Statements and the annual report, which is prepared pursuant to section 65 of the Parliamentary Service Act. The annual report for 2012–13 assessed performance against the targets set in the Portfolio Budget Statements 2012–13 and presented the department’s financial statements.

Copies of the department’s annual report and Portfolio Budget Statements were provided to all members and published on the Parliament of Australia website.

Risk management and fraud control

Following the internal audit into business continuity planning, the department established a business continuity network to assist in training staff to manage the risk of business interruptions. The department also introduced a regime for regular testing of office-level business resumption plans.

As in previous years, new staff were informed of their financial management responsibilities and the department’s fraud risk assessment and fraud control plan in the regular induction programs. There were no losses of public money and no instances of fraud identified during the year.

Service charters

The department’s service charters for members and the community continued to provide the basis for the standards of service that members and the public can expect from the department.

Social justice and equity

The department’s role is to support the House of Representatives rather than to deliver services directly to the public. Accordingly, contributing towards achieving social justice within the broader community is not a direct responsibility of the department. However, the department works towards achieving social justice indirectly through the work of the House of Representatives itself, its members and its committees.

Inter-parliamentary departmental collaboration

Meetings of parliamentary departmental heads

Formal quarterly meetings of the departmental heads continued during the year. Meetings were held on 25 September 2013, 16 December 2013 and 28 February 2014. Responsibility for chairing the meetings rotates between the departments on an annual basis.

Matters discussed in 2013–14 included:

• the development of a reconciliation action plan for the parliamentary departments
• freedom of information and public interest disclosure legislation
• budget processes for the parliamentary departments
• award modernisation
• ICT matters, including consolidation of ICT services
• the role of the Senior Management Coordination Group
• the development of an overall strategic plan for parliamentary administration
• reporting and the protective security policy framework
• preparations for the Forty-fourth Parliament
• the proposed new parliamentary service determination.

Senior Management Coordination Group and Parliamentary Administration Advisory Group

The Senior Management Coordination Group coordinated corporate and related matters across the parliamentary departments for more than 25 years. In 2013, the terms of reference for the group were reviewed, and in 2014, it was replaced by the Parliamentary Administration Advisory Group.

The Parliamentary Administration Advisory Group provides advice and support to the parliamentary departmental heads by overseeing the implementation of corporate services matters and initiatives of common interest across the parliamentary departments.

The group’s members are the Serjeant-at-Arms, the Usher of the Black Rod, the acting Chief Operating Officer of the Department of Parliamentary Services, and an assistant parliamentary budget officer of the Parliamentary Budget Office. In 2014, the group held three formal meetings; a series of informal corporate meetings were held in 2013. Responsibility for chairing the group rotates annually.

Purchaser–provider arrangements

The department continued to provide payroll services to the Parliamentary Budget Office and, until January 2014, to the Department of Parliamentary Services on a fee-for-service basis.

The department does not have any other purchaser–provider arrangements in place for selling services to or buying services from an Australian government agency.

The department receives certain building and ICT services from the Department of Parliamentary Services, and audit services from the Australian National Audit Office. These services are accounted for in the department’s financial statements as resources received free of charge.

The department also has agreements in place with the Department of the Senate in relation to the provision of inter-parliamentary services (by this department) and parliamentary education services (by the Department of the Senate). We run parliamentary education seminars on a fee-for-service basis for government departments.