Reports
Actions for Volume Thirteen 2015 Electricity
Volume Thirteen 2015 Electricity
The NSW Government continues to divest its interest in electricity businesses.
In 2014-15, Macquarie Generation and Delta Electricity’s Colongra power stations were sold, collectively raising over $1.7 billion in gross proceeds.
In November 2015, the NSW Government announced the lease of TransGrid for 99 years to a private sector consortium for $10.3 billion and the sale of Delta Electricity’s Vales Point power station for $1.0 million. It expects to lease 50.4 percent of Ausgrid and Endeavour Energy during 2016, but retain 100 percent ownership of Essential Energy.
Its net investment in the electricity businesses at 30 June 2015 was $10.8 billion ($11.4 billion at 30 June 2014). This comprised $14.0 million in the electricity generators, $2.1 billion in TransGrid and $8.7 billion in the distributors.
Actions for Volume Twelve 2015 Part One Trade & Investment and TAFE
Volume Twelve 2015 Part One Trade & Investment and TAFE
Serious system limitations prevented TAFE NSW from providing sufficient and appropriate evidence to support recorded student revenue of $477 million, student receivables and accrued income of $47.6 million and unearned revenue of $398 million.
These limitations resulted in:
- a qualified audit opinion being issued for TAFE NSW;
- delays in enrolling students;
- inability to fully reconcile cash balances;
- difficulties in reconciling student enrolments with revenues recorded in the financial statements;
- large volumes of manual processing.
Actions for Volume Twelve 2015 Part Two Water
Volume Twelve 2015 Part Two Water
The distributions to the NSW Government increased from $690 million in 2013-14 to $1.0 billion in 2014-15. The increase was largely due to a higher dividend from Sydney Water Corporation.
Actions for Volume Eleven 2015 Education and Communities
Volume Eleven 2015 Education and Communities
The number of students enrolled in NSW public schools has increased by over 21,000 during the past five years taking total enrolments in 2014 to 763,698.
While growth in student numbers is concentrated in metropolitan Sydney, enrolments in Northern Sydney increased by 20 per cent in the past ten years.
Actions for Volume Nine 2015 Planning and Environment
Volume Nine 2015 Planning and Environment
The NSW Environment Protection Authority has reduced the average time to assess contaminated sites from 203 days in 2013-14 to 73 days in 2014-15. It is also improving transparency by making more information on its performance publicly available.
In 2014-15, the Department of Planning and Environment increased new housing approvals across New South Wales by 12 per cent to 58,252, exceeding the State priority target of 50,000. It also reduced the time taken to assess major projects from about three years in 2013-14 to four months in 2014-15.
Actions for Large construction projects
Large construction projects
The independent assurance given to the NSW Government and sponsor agencies on the viability of large capital projects throughout their lifecycle is inadequate. Government policy is regularly not followed and not properly communicated to those responsible for implementing such policy.
This audit sought to test the effectiveness of the NSW capital project assurance system - which includes gateway reviews and reporting - but significant levels of non-compliance identified in our case studies prevented this. The NSW Commission of Audit also identified this issue in 2012. Gateway reviews are conducted by independent reviewers at key stages of a project’s life cycle and provide an independent assessment on a project’s readiness to proceed to the next stage.
Parliamentary reference - Report number #252 - released 7 May 2015
Actions for Country towns water supply and sewerage program
Country towns water supply and sewerage program
The Country Towns Water Supply and Sewerage Program has effectively promoted adoption of better management practices by local water utilities, but will not achieve its objective of eliminating the water supply and sewerage infrastructure backlog in urban areas of country NSW.
The $1.2 billion Program aims to help local water utilities provide appropriate, affordable, cost effective and well-managed water supply and sewerage services in the urban areas of country NSW. It has two broad elements:
- promoting adoption of better practices
- providing financial assistance towards the capital cost of infrastructure backlog works.
Parliamentary reference - Report number #251 - released 4 May 2015
Actions for Areas of focus from 2014
Areas of focus from 2014
Actions for Vocational education and training reform
Vocational education and training reform
The Department’s framework for VET reform has the potential to effectively achieve the government’s immediate objectives for the reform, which are associated with meeting its commitments under the National Partnership Agreement for Skills Reform without spending more. We found that the government is addressing VET reform objectives in the following order of priority: no extra cost (budget neutrality), TAFE viability, quality VET, access to VET for regions and equity groups, more contestability, student choice. Overall, we conclude that a more balanced approach, by putting more emphasis on increased contestability and student choice, is more likely to maximise the public value for the government’s investment in VET.
Parliamentary reference - Report number #249 - released 29 January 2015
Actions for Volume Five 2013 focusing on Education
Volume Five 2013 focusing on Education
Unqualified audit opinions were issued on the following financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2013: Department of Education and Communities (including the TAFE Commission), Technical and Further Education Commission, Board of Studies, Office of the Board of Studies, Board of Studies Casual Staff Division, Institute of Teachers, Office of the Institute of Teachers, NSW Board of Vocational Education and Training.
A key issue of focus was around the revaluation of School and TAFE NSW buildings. The report found that the Department’s approach to revaluing its buildings addressed previous concerns, however more work is required to refine the revaluation model and to build on the evidence available for cost rates.