The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit will be holding public hearings for its inquiries into 2022–23 Defence Major Projects Report, Commonwealth Financial Statements 2022–23, the failed visa privatisation process and the implementation of other public sector IT procurements and projects.

Media release issue date: Tuesday, 23 April 2024

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) will be holding public hearings on Wednesday, 24 April 2024, for its inquiries into: 2022–23 Defence Major Projects Report (first hearing) Commonwealth Financial Statements 2022–23 (second hearing) the failed visa privatisation process and the implementation of other public sector IT procurements and projects (continuing). The details are as follows: Date:             Wednesday, 24 April 2024 Time:             8.45am – 5.00pm (AEST) Venue:           Committee Room 2R1, Parliament House and by videoconference Program: Inquiry into the Defence Major Projects Report 2022–23 8.45am           Department of Defence                          Australian National Audit Office Inquiry into the failed visa privatisation process and implementation of other public sector IT procurements and projects 10.30am         Department of Employment and Workplace Relations                           Australian National Audit Office                          Workforce Australia IT System (Digital Employment Services Platform) and Apprenticeships Data Management System 11.15am         Department of Finance                          Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority                          Australian National Audit Office                          Parliamentary Expenses Management System (PEMS) 12.30pm         Department of Finance                          Digital Transformation Agency                          Review and approval processes for IT systems Inquiry into Commonwealth Financial Statements 2022–23 3.30pm           Department of Health and Aged Care                          Australian National Audit Office                          Potential legislative breaches relating to various benefits and services and significant finding regarding legislative                          compliance and legal advice 4.00pm           Department of Social Services                          Australian National Audit Office                          Late disclosure of information on income apportionment 4.30pm           Australian Taxation Office                          Australian National Audit Office                          IT Change Management policies and practices and other unresolved findings relating to pursuing debt and re-raises The hearings will be broadcast live and will be accessible from the Parliament House website. Details on the inquiries – including the terms of reference and submissions received – are available on the Committee website. Media inquiries Mr Julian Hill MP, Chair of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit on (03) 9791 7770 (Electorate Office) or via Laura Hooper 0422 85 1127. 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.

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit will conduct the first public hearings for its inquiries on the 2022-23 Commonwealth Financial Statements and on the failed visa privatisation process and the implementation of other public sector IT procurements and projects.

Media release issue date: Thursday, 18 April 2024

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) will conduct the first public hearings on Friday 19 April 2024 for its inquiries on the 2022-23 Commonwealth Financial Statements and on the failed visa privatisation process and the implementation of other public sector IT procurements and projects. The details are as follows: Date: Friday 19 April 2024 Time: 10.00am – 3.30pm (AEST) Venue: Committee Room 2R1, Parliament House Program Inquiry into Commonwealth Financial Statements 2022-23 10.00am         Australian National Audit Office 11.15am         [IT and AI matters raised in the audit – roundtable] Australian National Audit Office Department of Home Affairs Department of Finance Digital Transformation Agency Australian Signals Directorate Department of Industry, Science and Resources 12.15pm         Break Inquiry into the failed visa privatisation process and the implementation of other public sector IT procurements and projects 1.00pm           Australian National Audit Office Department of Home Affairs 2.30pm           Australian National Audit Office 3.30pm           Close The hearings will be broadcast live and will be accessible from the Parliament House website at www.aph.gov.au/live. Details on the inquiries – including the terms of reference and submissions received – are available on the Committee website. Media inquiries Mr Julian Hill MP, Chair of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit on (03) 9791 7770 (Electorate Office) or via Laura Hooper 0422 85 1127. 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.

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has expanded an existing inquiry examining the previous government’s failed attempts to privatise the visa processing system and deliver new IT systems in Home Affairs, to examine public sector IT projects more widely.

Media release issue date: Thursday, 21 March 2024

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) has expanded an existing inquiry examining the previous government’s failed attempts to privatise the visa processing system and deliver new IT systems in Home Affairs, to examine public sector IT projects more widely. Committee Chair, Mr Julian Hill MP, said that “lessons must be drawn from both stages of the failed attempt to privatise and procure a new visa processing system for Home Affairs, and it’s already clear that broader scrutiny of other large-scale public sector IT projects is warranted. “We will get to the bottom of what happened with the visa processing debacle, and how and why nearly $150 million was wasted. There are broader lessons to be drawn however into appropriate practices for new IT projects and expenditure in the public sector, including capability-building, advice to government, probity and ethics, and value for money for the Commonwealth.” In addition to both stages of the failed visa processing privatisation, including Auditor-General Report No. 34 of 2022-23 - Procurement of the Permissions Capability, the inquiry will now also consider others reports including: Auditor-General Report No. 12 of 2023-24 - Administration of the Parliamentary Expense Management System Auditor-General Report No. 7 of 2023-24 - Establishment of the Workforce Australia Services Panel, specifically on the implementation of a new digital services platform to support employment services. Additional areas of focus for the Committee will include: The Digital Transformation Agency’s role in evaluating public sector IT investment. Department of Finance assessments of certain high value procurements. The Australian Public Service Digital Profession’s role in building digital capability in the public service. Any lessons learnt from previous large-scale IT projects. Details of the revised inquiry, including the new terms of reference and details on hearings, will be made available on the Committee website. The Committee invites submissions to the inquiry addressing the revised terms of reference to be received by Friday 12 April 2024. The Committee is reminding witnesses of interest of its power to summon witnesses should that be required. Media enquiries Mr Julian Hill MP, Chair of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit via Laura Hooper on 0422 851 127. For background information Committee Secretariat 02 6277 4615 jcpaa@aph.gov.au Committee Secretary Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit PO Box 6021 Parliament House Canberra ACT 2600 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.

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has initiated a new inquiry to examine the Department of Home Affairs’ procurement of a replacement IT system for processing visa applications.

Media release issue date: Thursday, 30 November 2023

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) has initiated a new inquiry to examine the Department of Home Affairs’ procurement of a replacement IT system for processing visa applications. Home Affairs engaged in a multi-stage procurement for the visa processing capability which commenced in September 2017, with a new related process beginning in October 2020. Chair of the Committee, Mr Julian Hill MP, said that the inquiry will consider the expenditure incurred and whether value for money was achieved, the impact of anticipated savings on the Department of Home Affairs, the conduct of entities or persons involved or interested in the process, the ethical use of resources and ethical behaviour, and any lessons arising. “The previous Government wasted $92 million on a failed attempt to privatise visa processing, yet after they abandoned their tender process still forced Home Affairs to bear a $180 million cut from fake savings that never materialised. “The Auditor-General examined some of these issues in a report tabled this year, but further questions that have emerged warrant a stand-alone inquiry. “The Parliament and public should understand what went on regarding this aborted, wasteful privatisation and what lessons should be learnt given the critical importance of actually doing something to upgrade Home Affairs’ antiquated IT systems. “The Committee looks forward to hearing from Home Affairs and to considering the conduct of entities or persons involved or interested in that procurement process”, Mr Hill said. The inquiry will focus on matters contained in or related to Auditor-General Report No. 34 of 2022-23 - Procurement of the Permissions Capability. The Committee invites submissions from interested parties by 31 January 2024. Further information about the inquiry is available on the Committee website. Media inquiries Mr Julian Hill MP, Chair of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit via Laura Hooper on 0422 85 11 27 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.