Report 11: 2018-19

Opinions on Ministerial Notifications

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Ministerial decisions not to provide information to Parliament

Introduction

This report deals with 2 decisions by 2 Ministers not to provide information to Parliament.

  • One decision by the Minister for Finance, the Hon Ben Wyatt MLA, not to provide information to Parliament about payers of payroll tax and the amount paid by each.
  • One decision by the Minister for Water, the Hon Dave Kelly MLA, not to provide Parliament with information relating to the Annual Reports from Liveringa Station. Section 24 of the Auditor General Act 2006 (AG Act) requires the Auditor General to provide an opinion to Parliament as to whether the Minister’s decision was reasonable and appropriate.
  • Section 82 of the Financial Management Act 2006 (the FM Act) requires a Minister who decides that it is reasonable and appropriate not to provide certain information to Parliament, to give written notice of the decision to both Houses of Parliament and the Auditor General within 14 days of the decision.

What did we do?

The Audit Practice Statement on our website sets out the process we follow to arrive at our section 82 opinions, including:

  • a review of agency documents
  • a review of any advice provided to the relevant Minister by agencies, the State Solicitor’s Office (SSO) or other legal advisers
  • interviews with key agency persons including discussions about our draft findings and the Auditor General’s opinion.

Our procedures are designed to provide sufficient appropriate evidence to support an independent view to Parliament on the reasonableness and appropriateness of the Minister’s decision.

We have not performed an audit, however our procedures follow the key principles in the Australian Auditing and Assurance Standards.

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