The Department of Primary Industries (DPI) has a crucial role in assisting the irrigation industry to respond to the conflicting demands placed upon the state’s water resources. The State Plan emphasises the importance of water to agriculture, and gives DPI responsibility to use its training programs to help farmers continue to increase water use efficiency. DPI needs to work closely with agencies with which it shares responsibilities in the State Plan to ensure that its water use efficiency activities contribute to the State Plan goals. It needs to work closely with Treasury to document the services it will require to do this, the resources which will be needed, and how its success will be measured. This will ensure that DPI is well placed to continue to assist the NSW farming industry to adapt and survive periods of reduced water availability. 

Parliamentary reference - Report number #172 - released 21 November 2007

Both the University of New South Wales' Internal Audit and HR reports identified serious deficiencies in the operation and management of the Education Training Centre (ETC). This performance audit verified those findings where appropriate, and they are referred to or incorporated within this report. In addition, we identified other weaknesses that are also presented here. All the findings point to a serious lack of management controls, proper accountability and management practices within ETC.

The Audit Office has a concern whether other activities within the University, or indeed within any other university, could be functioning with similar lack of corporate governance and accountability arrangements. The Audit Office considers that there is an urgent need for the University, and for other universities, to review their corporate governance and accountability framework.

Parliamentary reference - Report number #91 - released 21 November 2001

The Audit Office recognises that TAFE NSW has undergone significant change in the last decade in order to improve service delivery. Whilst the focus of change has been TAFE NSW's core educational role, administration has also benefited. The Quality Management Systems introduced by the Institutes are an example.

The Audit Office is of the opinion that TAFE NSW needs a means by which the efficiency and effectiveness of administrative functions can be assessed notwithstanding initiatives by certain Institutes to introduce monitoring, benchmarking and reporting of administration. In the interests of accountability, TAFE NSW requires the establishment of a common performance reporting framework for administration in each Institute and across Institutes. Along with other key result areas of TAFE NSW’s operations, a reporting framework would better able the TAFE Commission Board (the Board) to inform the Minister for Education, in compliance with the Act, of the efficiency and effectiveness of the administrative functions.

Parliamentary reference - Report number #79 - released 6 February 2001