In a report released today, the NSW Auditor-General, Margaret Crawford provides a snapshot of reported fraud in the NSW public sector and an analysis of NSW Government agencies’ fraud controls based on a survey of 102 agencies.

The NSW Government’s ‘program evaluation initiative’, introduced to assess whether service delivery programs achieve expected outcomes and value for money, is largely ineffective according to a report released today by NSW Auditor-General, Margaret Crawford. Government services, in areas such as public order and safety, health and education, are delivered by agencies through a variety of programs. In 2016–17, the NSW Government estimates that it will sp

In a report released today, the NSW Auditor-General, Margaret Crawford found some NSW Government agencies were not publicly releasing all the required information on contracts with the private sector, nor were they publishing it in a timely manner. This report assessed whether 13 agencies were complying with Part 3 Division 5 of the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (GIPA Act), relating to Government contracts with the private sector.

Police officers and firefighters in NSW are benefiting from an improved focus on preventing and managing injuries, according to a report released today by the NSW Auditor-General. However, the audit found these gains may not be enough to offset risks associated with increasing common law claims, and death and disability scheme costs. ‘Emergency service workers face dangerous situations and traumatic scenes’ said the Auditor-General ‘and are at a signifi

New South Wales has a lower rate of foodborne illness than the national average. This reflects some good practices in the NSW Food Authority’s approach to monitoring food safety standards. It also is a factor of the long-standing commitment by local councils’ to ensuring retail food businesses meet these standards. To ensure foodborne illness remains low, the Authority needs to better monitor its arrangements with councils which inspect retail food busi

The management of the sale and lease of Crown land is not effective because oversight of decision-making is inadequate and community involvement is limited, according to a report released today by NSW Auditor-General, Margaret Crawford. The audit found limited oversight of sales and leases of Crown land by the Department of Industry - Lands. The Department has only just started monitoring whether tenants are complying with lease conditions, and does not

Juvenile Justice prepares and assists young people to reintegrate into the community reasonably well, given the complex needs of young people in detention, according to a report released today by the NSW Auditor-General, Margaret Crawford. Juvenile Justice has many processes and programs to identify and address young people’s needs while in detention and links them to relevant support services in the community. It still faces some significant barriers w

The current benefits realisation approach for Service NSW needs to improve so benefits and savings can be effectively measured, reported and realised, according to a report released today by the NSW Acting Auditor-General, Tony Whitfield. Customers are finding that Service NSW provides a convenient and practical way to access all government transaction services.   Parliamentary reference - Report number #266 - released 17 February 2016

The Public Service Commission is making good progress with leading the implementation of public sector management reforms, according to a report released today by the Acting New South Wales Auditor-General, Tony Whitfield. 'The Commission developed a sound evidence base for the reforms and gained wide public sector support by engaging with agency heads and using public sector working groups to develop options', said the Acting Auditor-General. 'They dev

The Division of Local Government (DLG) has helped many NSW councils improve their long-term financial planning and asset management practice. Many councils are serving their communities well. However, because DLG lacks the power, it finds it difficult to respond effectively when things go wrong.   Parliamentary reference - Report number #225 - released 26 September 2012