Report 4: 2018

Opinions on Ministerial Notifications

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Introduction and what did we do?

This report deals with 4 decisions by 3 Ministers not to provide information to Parliament:

  • One decision by the Treasurer, the Hon Ben Wyatt MLA, not to provide information to Parliament about which current Members of Parliament are members of the Parliamentary Pension Scheme (PPS) administered by the Government Employees Superannuation Board (GESB).
  • Two decisions by the Minister for Corrective Services, the Hon Francis Logan MLA, not to provide information to Parliament about the cost savings from converting the Wandoo Reintegration Facility into a women’s drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility operated by the State.
  • One decision by the Minister for Tourism, the Hon Paul Papalia MLA, not to provide information to Parliament about the amount of funding provided for the Margaret River Gourmet Escape in 2017.

Section 82 of the Financial Management Act 2006 (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.

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.

What did we do?

The Audit Practice Statement on our website (www.audit.wa.gov.au) 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 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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