Reports
Actions for Environmental Grants Administration
Environmental Grants Administration
We found many aspects of good grants management, particularly in the Trust. All of the programs we looked at are clearly aligned to the Government’s objective to improve environmental outcomes. The Trust also has good practices for allocating grants. Performance in respect of results was mixed although many grants delivered tangible benefits - homes were protected from floods, degraded waterways restored and endangered habitats protected.
Generally we found that while both Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water and the NSW Environmental Trust had a range of strategies to monitor grants these were not always applied consistently or effectively. Grant programs need to be regularly evaluated to see what is working and what can be done better.
Parliamentary reference - Report number #190 - released 26 August 2009
Actions for Tackling Cancer with Radiotherapy
Tackling Cancer with Radiotherapy
Overall radiotherapy services are managed in a reasonably efficient and effective manner. Much is being done to further improve efficiency and effectiveness, and more can be done. While New South Wales has a number of well-established radiotherapy treatment centres, the high capital cost limits their availability in all hospitals. Some patients need to travel long distances and be away from their homes for up to seven weeks. The projected growth in demand for radiotherapy services will further challenge NSW Health and it needs to more clearly demonstrate how it will have the right facilities in the right place at the right time.
Parliamentary reference - Report number #188 - released 23 June 2009
Actions for Grants Administration
Grants Administration
We found no significant difference in the funding of government and opposition electorates. However, more money was given to electorates that were safely held by the major parties. These seats received $1.29 for every dollar given to marginal and independent seats with government marginals getting the least. Electorates also receive different levels of funding according to which region they are in. Such variations may reflect valid agency objectives such as meeting State Plan targets or addressing socio-economic disadvantage.
But while agencies publish who gets what, they do not adequately evaluate or explain what grant programs have achieved. As a result, there is a risk that New South Wales may not get the best value for its spending. We recommend that agencies regularly evaluate their grant programs and publish the results.
Parliamentary reference - Report number #186 - released 6 May 2009