This edition of Professional Update has been prepared at a time when the wider community are responding to the impacts of COVID-19. Whilst this edition of Professional Update includes the usual summary of key professional developments over the last quarter, it includes guidance and resources that financial statement preparers and auditors will consider useful in responding to the impacts of COVID-19.

Hot Topics

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AASB and AUASB Joint FAQ March 2020: The Impact of Coronavirus on Financial Reporting and the Auditor’s Considerations

The AASB and AUASB have released a joint FAQ ‘The Impact of Coronavirus on Financial Reporting and the Auditor’s Considerations’ to help inform preparers of financial statements and auditors, about some of the key financial reporting and auditing considerations, and impacts arising from COVID-19.

It is important that the entity’s management and those charged with governance (TCWG) liaise with their auditors to discuss and assess the impact of COVID-19 at an early stage of the financial and auditing process. The FAQ provides key considerations for both preparers and the auditors of financial statements.

Preparers of financial statements should be considering:

whether the impacts of COVID-19 will be material to the entity
potential adjustments to the financial statements in the year of reporting and after the reporting period ends
disclosures that might be required.

Auditors of financial statements should be considering:

whether TCWG have performed a risk assessment of COVID-19 on the entity’s financial statements, including whether the entity should use a going concern basis of accounting
the sufficiency of the disclosures in the financial statements and any impacts on the auditor’s report
limitation of travel to entity premises and the potential scope limitation in performing the audit work.

Additional guidance on emerging risks is also contained in the AASB-AUASB Bulletin ‘Climate-related and other emerging risks disclosures: assessing financial statement materiality using AASB/IASB Practice Statement 2’.

AASB 2020-1 – Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current

The Australian Accounting Standards Board issued AASB 2020-1 'Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards - Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current' to amend AASB 101 ‘Presentation of Financial Statements’ to clarify requirements for the presentation of liabilities in the statement of financial position. These clarifications include:

that a liability is classified as non-current if an entity has a right at the end of the reporting period to defer settlement for at least 12 months after the reporting period
the meaning of ‘settlement’ of a liability.

AASB 2019-8 – Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Class of Right-of-Use Assets arising under Concessionary Leases

The Australian Accounting Standards Board issued AASB 2019-8 ‘Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Class of Right-of-Use Assets arising under Concessionary Leases’ to clarify the approach to be taken by not-for-profit entities for right-of-use assets arising from concessionary leases.

The Standard amends AASB 16 ‘Leases’ and AASB 1049 ‘Whole of Government and General Government Sector Financial Reporting’ to:

specify that not-for-profit entities’ right-of-use (ROU) assets arising from concessionary leases can be treated as a separate class of ROU assets to ROU assets arising under other leases for the purposes of AASB 16.

This approach does not apply by analogy to distinguish sub-classes of other assets as separate classes of assets.

provide an option for a Whole of Government (WoG) and General Government Sector (GGS) to measure ROU assets arising under concessionary leases at cost or fair value in subsequent measurements.

This option does not extend to entities outside WoG or GGS, such as local governments as these entities are not required by current accounting standards to adopt a fair value approach.

The amending Standard applies to annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2019. Earlier application is permitted provided AASB 1058 ‘Income of Not-for-Profit Entities’ is also applied for the same period.

AASB Exposure Draft ED 298 ‘General Presentation and Disclosures’

The Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) recently released exposure draft ED 298 ‘General Presentation and Disclosures’ (the ED), based on exposure draft ED/2019/7 ‘General Presentation and Disclosures’ issued by the International Accounting Standards Board.

The aim of the ED is to improve how information is communicated in the financial statements, focussing on information about performance in the statement of profit or loss. This is in response to concerns about the comparability and transparency of companies’ performance reporting.

The main proposals in the ED would require entities to:

include additional subtotals in the statement of profit or loss to help improve comparability among entities by creating a more consistent structure to the statement
aggregate and disaggregate items based on shared characteristics without obscuring relevant information or reducing the understandability of the information presented or disclosed
disclose some management-defined performance measures (not specified by AASB standards) and reconciliations between these measures and subtotals required by accounting standards to promote transparency.

The AASB notes the ED contains a number of similarities and differences to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) Regulatory Guide RG 230 ‘Disclosing non-IFRS financial information’ released in December 2011, and also welcomes comments on this aspect.

Comments are due to the AASB by 15 May 2020 and to the IASB by 30 June 2020.

AASB staff FAQs – updates relating to research grants

The AASB has recently updated ‘AASB Staff FAQs: AASB 15 'Revenue from Contracts with Customers', AASB 1058 'Income of Not-for-Profit Entities' and AASB 16 'Leases’ (the FAQ).

The FAQ includes three new questions and one updated question relating to accounting for research grants.

NSW Treasury pronouncements

TD 20-01 ‘Gifts of government property’

NSW Treasury released TD 20-01 'Gifts of government property’ to:

specify for the purposes of section 5.6(1)(c) of the Government Sector Finance Act 2018 (GSF Act) circumstances in which a person handling government resources can make a gift of government property
ensure that such gifts of government property are made in accordance with specified values and associated principles
to require the accountable authority for a GSF agency to maintain records of gifts made for or on behalf of the agency.

TD 20-01 was made under sections 3.1 and 5.6 of the GSF Act and applies to all GSF agencies and persons handling government resources.

TD 19-01 ‘Financial Services’

NSW Treasury released TD 19-01 ‘Financial Services’ to:

regulate the use of financial services (including banking services) provided under a State financial service agreement or otherwise
ensure consistency in the opening, closing and operating of bank accounts of a GSF agency
require the efficient, effective and economical use of financial services for the State and GSF agencies
optimally manage the State’s balance sheet and facilitate best practice liquidity risk management.

This Direction was made under sections 3.1, 6.15, 6.19 and 6.22 of Government Sector Finance Act 2018 (GSF Act) and applies to all GSF agencies subject to the financial services provisions of Part 6 of the GSF Act and to the accountable authorities and government officers of those agencies.

TPP 20-01 ‘Accounting Policy: Financial Reporting Code for NSW General Government Sector Entities’ (the Code)

NSW Treasury released the Code for financial years ending on or after 30 June 2020, as a model financial reporting framework, with illustrative guidance on the form and content of the financial statements for general government sector agencies. The main changes to the Code for 30 June 2020 include:

new disclosure requirements for the adoption of AASB 15, AASB 1058 and AASB 16
revised accounting policies and the related commentary on revenue and leasing
revised disaggregation of revenue items and the related commentary on presentation
changes to the disclosure of appropriations due to the introduction of the new concept of “deemed appropriations” in the Government Sector Finance Act 2018
removal of financial instrument disclosures relevant to financial years 2017-18 and earlier.

TPP 20-01 supersedes and withdraws the previous policy TPP 19-04.

TC 20-01 ‘Mandates of options and major policy decisions under Australian Accounting Standards’

NSW Treasury released TC 20-01 'Mandates of options and major policy decisions under Australian Accounting Standards' (the Circular) which updates mandates under Australian Accounting Standards to be applied by all NSW public sector entities (including Statutory State Owned Corporations) that have to prepare general purpose financial statements for financial years ending on or after 30 June 2020. The Circular supersedes and withdraws TC 19-04.

The main change to the mandates are to include the options that agencies must elect when applying:

AASB 15 ‘Revenue from Contracts with Customers’, AASB 1058 ‘Income of Not-for-Profit Entities’ (not for profit entities only)
and AASB 16 ‘Leases’ (all entities).

The Circular was issued as a Direction under sections 9 and 45E of the Public Finance and Audit Act 1983.

TC 18-05 ‘AASB 16 Leases Transition Elections’ updated to include concessionary leases

NSW Treasury recently updated TC 18-05 ‘AASB 16 Leases Transition Elections’ to include guidance on concessionary leases.

Treasury has mandated:

that agencies treat right-of-use assets arising from concessionary leases as a separate class of right-of-use assets and to measure them at cost for both initial recognition and subsequent measurement
for existing concessionary finance leases as at 30 June 2019 that have already applied the fair value model under AASB 117 ‘Leases’ (superseded), that the carrying amount of these assets are deemed to be their cost as at 1 July 2020 under AASB 16 ‘Leases’.

Final 2020 Code of Accounting Practice and Financial Reporting Issued

The Office of Local Government (OLG) recently issued Circular 20-11 ‘Final Code of Accounting Practice and Financial Reporting (update 28) including Joint Organisation Supplement’ (the Code).

The Code prescribes the format for preparing councils’ and joint organisations’ 2019-20 financial statements and must be used to ensure compliance with the financial reporting requirements of the Local Government Act 1993 and the Local Government (General) Regulation 2015.

A full summary of the changes is available on the OLG website.

Local council tendering exemption threshold of $500,000 for bushfire recovery and operations contracts

The Office of Local Government (OLG) issued Circular 20-03 ‘Amendments to the Local Government (General) Regulation 2005 to increase the tendering exemption threshold for contracts for bushfire recovery and operations’ to advise councils of amendments made under the Local Government (General) Amendment (Tendering) Regulation 2020 (the Regulation).

The Regulation amends the Local Government (General) Regulation 2005 to prescribe a threshold amount for contracts of $500,000 or less as exempt from tendering requirements under section 55(3)(n)(i) of the Local Government Act 1993 where the contract is:

entered into during the period 17 January 2020 to 1 July 2020 and
primarily for the purposes of bushfire response and recovery.

ASIC issues audit inspection findings for the 12 months to 30 June 2019

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) recently released its Audit inspection report for 2018-19 (the Report). ASIC inspections focus on audits of financial reports of public interest entities prepared under the Corporations Act 2001. ASIC found auditors did not obtain reasonable assurance that the financial report as a whole was free from material misstatement in 26 per cent of the 207 key audit areas that it reviewed on a risk basis across 58 audit files in the 12 months to 30 June 2019. This compares to 24 per cent across 347 key audit areas for the 18 months to 30 June 2018.

ASIC reported audit quality issues in the following key areas:

asset values, particularly impairment of non-financial assets
revenue and receivables
investments and financial instruments
inventory and cost of sales
expenses and payables
taxation
using the work of experts and other auditors
journal entry testing
enhanced audit reports.

ASIC’s report highlighted new regulatory initiatives to be undertaken to improve audit quality such as:

utilising its Office of Enforcement to undertake enforcement actions against auditors for defective audits and auditor independence issues under a ‘why not litigate’ approach
reviewing conflicts of interest, culture, talent, governance and accountability at audit firms
reviewing the effectiveness of root cause analysis conducted by audit firms
including additional statistics within the Report for transparency purposes.

ASIC’s report also highlighted:

the role of audit firms to continue improving audit quality
the role of directors and audit committees to ensure financial reports provide timely, useful and meaningful information.

Interim report from Parliamentary Inquiry into Regulation of Auditing in Australia

The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services (the Committee) recently released the Regulation of Auditing in Australia: Interim Report (Interim Report).

The Interim Report proposed ten recommendations, as summarised below:

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to review and revise the manner in which it publicly reports the periodic findings of its audit inspection program, including the grading of the severity of audit deficiencies, by the end of 2020-21.
The Australian Government to legislate, by the end of 2020-21, the requirement for ASIC to publish individual audit firm inspection results (following implementation of recommendation 1).
ASIC and the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), by the end of 2020-21, to introduce under Australian standards:
1. defined audit and non-audit categories and associated fee disclosures
2. a list of prohibited non-audit services.
The Corporations Act 2001 (Corps Act) be amended to require auditors confirm, in an auditor’s independence declaration, they have not provided prohibited non-audit services.
The Australian Professional Ethics and Standards Board to consider revising its code of ethics (APES 110) to stop partner incentives to sell non-audit work to audit clients.
The FRC to oversee implementation of Australian standards, by the end of 2020-21, requiring audited entities to disclose audit firm tenure and lead audit partner tenure in financial reports.
The Corps Act be amended to require companies to undertake a public tender for auditors every 10 years or to explain why in their annual reports if they did not do so. This process would be implemented by 2022 for any company with the same auditor for a continuous period of ten years since 2012.
The FRC to oversee a review, reporting by the end of 2020-21, of the sufficiency and effectiveness of reporting requirements under existing Australian standards relating to the prevention and detection of fraud and management’s assessment of going concern.
The Corps Act be amended so companies required to have their financial reports audited under the Corps Act must establish and maintain an internal control framework for financial reporting.
The changes will also require external auditors to report on management’s assessment of the effectiveness of that framework.
The Australian Government to take action to make digital financial reporting standard practice in Australia.

As the inquiry has been extended, the final report from the Committee is not due until September 2020.

ICAC release new conflict of interest guidance material

In January 2020, ICAC released the following guidance material relating to conflicts of interest:

FAQs for managers
FAQs for public officials
a sample conflict of interest policy that can be used by NSW public sector agencies.

The FAQs are presented for education and information purposes, and will be updated periodically.

The guidance material supports ICAC’s April 2019 publication ‘Managing conflicts of interest in the NSW Public sector’, which explains how to identify, disclose and manage a conflict of interest and sets out a broad control framework for public sector agencies to consider.

Audit Office of New South Wales

Margaret Crawford, Auditor-General for New South Wales – presentations, attendances and interviews

Organisation	Event	Involvement	Date
The Mandarin	Building Visibility and Influence for Women in the Public Sector	Panel participation*	31 March 2020
Bendelta	Webinar – Leading in times of crisis: 5 key practices	Attendance*	27 March 2020
The Australasian Council of Auditors General (ACAG)	ACAG Business Meeting	Attendance*	25 March 2020
Treasury	ARC Leadership Forum	Presentation*	20 March 2020
Public Service Commission	Government Sector International Women's Day	Panellist	10 March 2020
UN Women's National Committee	Sydney International Women's Day Breakfast	Attendance	6 March 2020
MinterEllison	International Women's Day Celebration	Attendance	5 March 2020
Parliament - Legislative Assembly	Public Accounts Committee Briefing	Briefing to discuss audit reports tabled since 21/11/2019	27 February 2020
Parliament - Legislative Assembly	Public Accounts Committee Hearing	Public hearing - follow up of performance audits	24 February 2020
Worimi Local Aboriginal Land Council	Site visit	Attendance	11-12 February 2020
EY	Sydney Financial Forum address - The Hon. Victor Dominello MP	Attendance	10 February 2020
Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA)	Picnic in the park	Attendance	6 February 2020
Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA)	2020 Trustee welcome back	Attendance	30 January 2020

*online attendance

Auditor-General’s reports to Parliament

Report	Type of report	Report date
Report on Local Government 2019	Financial Audit	5 March 2020

Accounting Update

Australian update – Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB)

Topics discussed included:

AASB Meeting Highlights – 5-6 March 2020

removal of SPFS and introduction of simplified disclosures for for-profit and not-for-profit (NFP)
classification of liabilities as current or non-current
concessionary leases of private sector NFP entities
fair value measurement for NFP entities
NFP entity definition and guidance (ED 291).

Latest news, accounting standards and work-in-progress documents from the AASB included:

Name	Type of document	Publication date
IASB guidance – application of IFRS 9 in the light of coronavirus uncertainty	Guidance	30 March 2020
AASB and IASB consult on ways to help investors hold companies to account for acquisitions and on goodwill accounting	Consultation	26 March 2020
‘Key facts’ documents to explain removal of SPFS and the new simplified disclosure standard	Report	26 March 2020
AASB 2020-2 ‘Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Removal of Special Purpose Financial Statements for Certain For-Profit Private Sector Entities’	Accounting standard	19 March 2020
AASB 1060 ‘General Purpose Financial Statements – Simplified Disclosures for For-Profit and Not-for-Profit Tier 2 Entities’	Accounting standard	19 March 2020
AASB−AUASB Joint FAQ March 2020 ‘The Impact of Coronavirus on Financial Reporting and the Auditor's Considerations’*	Report	17 March 2020
AASB 2020-1 ‘Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current’	Accounting standard	12 March 2020
February 2020 Update to AASB Staff FAQs for Not-for-Profit Entities – Research Grants*	FAQ	5 March 2020
AASB Research Report 14 Literature Review: Service Performance Reporting for Not-for-Profits	Research report	27 February 2020
Exposure Draft – ED 298 ‘General Presentation and Disclosures’ – January 2020 – Open for comment until 15 May 2020*	Exposure draft	23 January 2020
2019-8 ‘Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Class of Right-of-Use Assets arising under Concessionary Leases’*	Accounting standard	19 December 2019
2019-7 ‘Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Disclosure of GFS Measures of Key Fiscal Aggregates and GAAP/GFS Reconciliations’	Accounting standard	19 December 2019
2019-6 ‘Amendments to Australian Accounting Standards – Research Grants and Not-for-Profit Entities’	Accounting standard	18 December 2019

*For more information refer to Hot Topics section.

International Update – International Accounting Standards Board (IASB)

Topics discussed included:

IASB Meeting Highlights – 17 and 19 March 2020

amendments to IFRS 17 ‘Insurance Contracts’
rate-regulated activities
management commentary.

IASB Meeting Highlights – 25-27 February 2020

amendments to IFRS 17 ‘Insurance Contracts’
IBOR reform and the effects on financial reporting – phase 2
disclosure initiative – targeted standards-level review of disclosures
disclosure initiative – accounting policies
maintenance and consistent application
business combinations under common control.

IASB Meeting Highlights – 28-30 January 2020

subsidiaries that are SMEs
business combinations under common control
pension benefits that depend on asset returns
implementation matters
disclosure initiative – targeted standards-level review of disclosures
updating a reference to the conceptual framework (amendments to IFRS 3)
provisions
research programme update
rate-regulated activities
IBOR reform and its effect on financial reporting – phase 2
amendments to IFRS 17 ‘Insurance Contracts’
IFRS taxonomy update – interest rate benchmark reform.

International Update – International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation

Latest news from the IFRS Foundation included:

Name	Publication date
Application of IFRS 9 in the light of the coronavirus uncertainty	27 March 2020
March 2020 IASB update available and work plan updated	20 March 2020
Discussion paper and comment letters: business combinations – disclosures, goodwill and impairment	19 March 2020
IASB decides on new effective date for IFRS 17 of 1 January 2023	17 March 2020
Webinar: exposure draft general presentation and disclosures – recording available	11 February 2020
IASB clarifies requirements for classifying liabilities as current or non-current	23 January 2020

International Update – International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB)

Topics discussed included:

IPSASB Meeting Highlights – 10-13 March 2020

IPSASB guidance: landscape discussion
infrastructure
IFAC update
heritage
measurement
conceptual framework – limited scope update
natural resources
leases
accounting for non-current assets held for sale and discontinued operations in the public sector.

Name	Publication date
New report examines why accrual information is critical to the public sector	26 February 2020
IPSASB Issues Exposure Drafts on Revenue with or without performance obligations and Transfer expenses – stakeholder comments on Exposure Drafts 70, 71 and 72 sought by 15 September 2020	21 February 2020

Name	Publication date
2019 Handbook of International Public Sector Accounting Pronouncements	18 February 2020
Collective and Individual Services, Amendments to IPSAS 19	31 January 2020
Improvements to IPSAS, 2019	30 January 2020

Auditing Update

Australian Update – Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (AUASB)

Topics discussed included:

AUASB Meeting Highlights – 3 March 2020

ASA 315 ‘Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement’
GS 005 ‘Evaluating the Appropriateness of a Management’s Expert’s Work’
GS 009 ‘Auditing Self-managed Superannuation Funds’ and GS 012 ‘Prudential Reporting Requirements for Auditors of Authorised Deposit-taking Institutions (ADIs) and ADI Groups’
interim report of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services inquiry into regulation of auditing in Australia
presentation on December 2019 ASIC audit inspection results
digital ASA standards prototype.

AUASB Meeting Highlights – 4 February 2020

ED 01/20 ASRS 4400 ‘Agreed-Upon Procedures and Engagements’
ASA 315 ‘Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement’
GS 008 ‘The Auditor's Report on a Remuneration Report Under Section 300A of the Corporations Act 2001’
audit quality update.

Name	Publication date
Have your say on the future of the audit evidence standards	31 March 2020
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance for Auditors	31 March 2020
Extended External Reporting (EER) proposed IAASB unauthoritative guidance and AUASB consultation	18 March 2020
AASB−AUASB joint FAQ March 2020 ‘The impact of coronavirus on financial reporting and the auditor’s considerations’*	17 March 2020
GS 005 ‘Evaluating the Appropriateness of a Management’s Expert’s Work’	17 March 2020
AUASB issues revised ASA 315 ‘Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement’	13 March 2020
AUASB Bulletin on The Revised Code of Ethics and the Auditor’s Report	27 February 2020
Exposure Draft 01/20 on Proposed Standard on Related Services ASRS 4400 ‘Agreed-Upon Procedures Engagements’	19 February 2020

International Update – International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB)

Topics discussed included:

IAASB Meeting Highlights – 16-20 March 2020

ISA 220 (Revised)
ISA 600 (Revised)
ISQM 1
ISQM 2
audits of less complex entities
fraud and going concern.

IAASB Meeting Highlights (conference call) – 11 February 2020

IESBA Code – conforming amendments.

IAASB Meeting Highlights (conference call) 23 January 2020

group audits.

Latest news and publications from the IAASB included:

Name	Publication date
IAASB web page offers guidance for auditors during the Coronavirus pandemic	27 March 2020
ISA 315 (revised 2019): Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement	19 December 2019

Ethics Update

Australian Update – Accounting Professional and Ethical Standards Board (APESB)

Topics discussed included:

APESB Meeting Highlights – 6 March 2020

update on outsourcing
project proposal on artificial intelligence
project proposal on whistleblowing
key Issues in IESBA EDs
update on the parliamentary inquiry into audit regulation
update on revision of the auditor independence guide.

Latest news and technical updates from the APESB included:

Name	Publication date
APESB invites stakeholder feedback on Draft Independence Guide – 5^thedition	6 March 2020
APESB issues revised APES GN 41 ‘Management Representations’	4 March 2020
APESB issues revised APES GN 40 ‘Ethical Conflicts in the Workplace – Considerations for Members in Business’	4 March 2020
APESB issues revised APES GN 31 ‘Professional and Ethical Considerations relating to Low Doc Offering Sign-offs’	19 February 2020
APESB issues revised APES GN 30 ‘Outsourced Services’	19 February 2020
Strong auditor independence requirements: a key feature of the revised Code of Ethics	23 January 2020
APESB issues revised APES GN 21 ‘Valuation Services for Financial Reporting’	14 January 2020
APESB issues revised APES GN 20 ‘Scope and Extent of Work for Valuation Services’	14 January 2020

International Update – International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA)

Topics discussed included:

IESBA Meeting Highlights – 16-18 March 2020

role and mindset
tax planning and related services
engagement team / group audits
definition of listed entity and public interest entity
technology
PIE – public interest entities.

Latest news and publications from the IESBA included:

Name	Publication date
IESBA technology initiative webinar on April 20	30 March 2020
Global ethics board releases report exploring the ethical implications of technology for accountants	27 February 2020
IESBA proposes guidance to address the objectivity of engagement quality reviewers	30 January 2020
Global ethics board proposes significant revisions to international independence standards	21 January 2020
IESBA revises part 4B of the International Code of Ethics	3 January 2020

NSW Treasury

NSW Treasury documents and resources

Treasury’s recent releases included:

Name	Publication date
TC 20-02 AASB 16 Leases – subsequent measurement of ROUA	2 April 2020
General Government Financial Statements to 29 February 2020	31 March 2020
TC18-05 AASB 16 ‘Leases’ Transitions Elections*	27 February 2020
TPP 20-01 Financial Reporting Code for NSW General Government Sector Entities*	19 February 2020
TC20-01 Mandates of options and major policy decisions under Australian Accounting Standards*	19 February 2020
TPP19-08 Agency Direction for the 2019-20 Mandatory Early Close	5 February 2020
TD19-01 Financial services*	16 December 2019

*For more information refer to Hot Topics section.

Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC)

Ministerial Memoranda and Department Circulars

DPC released the following memos and circulars:

Name	Type of document	Publication date
C2020-02 Advice on international and domestic travel and transport in relation to Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)	Circular	12 March 2020
C2020-01 Employment Arrangements during COVID-19	Circular	12 March 2020

NSW Procurement Board

Directions and Procurement Alerts

NSW Procurement Board’s recent Directions and Procurement alerts included:

Name	Type of document	Publication date
ProcurePoint will soon be replaced by a new guided buying experience	Procurement alert	27 March 2020
Updated NSW Government Supplier Code of Conduct	Procurement alert	14 February 2020
PBD 2020-01 Support for bushfire affected communities	Board direction	28 January 2020
New whole-of-government contract 4000 – retain supply of natural gas to NSW government and eligible buyers (small sites) to start on 1 July 2020	Procurement alert	20 December 2019

Public Accountability Committee

Inquiries and Reports

Inquiries referred and Reports tabled in NSW Parliament included:

Name	Type of document	Publication date
NSW Government’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic	Inquiry	27 March 2020
Budget process for independent oversight bodies and the Parliament of New South Wales – first report	Report	24 March 2020

Office of Local Government (OLG)

Recent circulars released included:

Name	Publication date
20-11 Final Code of Accounting Practice and Financial Reporting (update 28) including Joint Organisations Supplement*	30 March 2020
20-10 Postponement of the September 2020 Local Government Elections	25 March 2020
20-09 Compliance with social distancing requirements to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus at council and committee meetings	25 March 2020
20-08 Release of the Guide to webcasting Council and Committee meetings	19 March 2020
20-07 Department of Premier and Cabinet circulars on employment arrangements and international and domestic travel in relation to novel coronavirus (COVID-19)	13 March 2020
20-06 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) development updates	10 March 2020
20-05 Release of councillor superannuation discussion paper	3 March 2020
20-04 Land use planning changes to assist communities recover from NSW bushfires	21 February 2020
20-03 Amendments to the Local Government (General) Regulation 2005 to increase the tendering exemption threshold for contracts for bushfire recovery and operations*	24 January 2020
20-02 Exemption for activities under Part 3 of the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act)	16 January 2020

*For more information refer to Hot Topics section.

Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)

Recent speeches and media releases included:

Name	Publication date
20-070MR ASIC recalibrates its regulatory priorities to focus on COVID-19 challenges	23 March 2020
20-062MR ASIC takes steps to ensure equity market resiliency	16 March 2020
20-047MR ASIC update on enforcement and regulatory work	26 February 2020
20-026MR ASIC review of 30 June 2019 financial reports	7 February 2020

Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC)

Publications by Australian and New Zealand Audit Offices

Australian National Audit Office

Australian National Audit Office (ANAO)	Type of report	Publication date
Regulation of Charities by the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission	Performance audit	31 March 2020
Case Management by the Office of the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions	Performance audit	30 March 2020
Australian Government Procurement Contract Reporting Update	Information report	11 March 2020
Management of Spectrum Reallocation to Support the Deployment of 5G Services	Performance audit	27 February 2020
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Participation Targets in Major Procurements	Performance audit	20 February 2020
Defence’s Management of its Public Communications and Media Activities	Performance audit	28 January 2020
Award of Funding under the Community Sport Infrastructure Program	Performance audit	15 January 2020
Future Submarine Program – Transition to Design	Performance audit	14 January 2020
Probity Management in Rural Research and Development Corporations	Performance audit	18 December 2019

Australian Capital Territory Audit Office

Australian Capital Territory Audit Office (ACT AO)	Type of report	Publication date
Shared Services Delivery of HR and Finance Services	Performance audit	21 February 2020
Maintenance of ACT Government School Infrastructure	Performance audit	19 December 2020

Northern Territory Auditor-General's Office

Northern Territory Auditor-General's Office (NT AGO)	Type of report	Publication date
March 2020 Report to the Legislative Assembly	Various	24 March 2020

Queensland Audit Office

Queensland Audit Office (QAO)	Type of report	Publication date
Local government entities: 2018–19 results of financial audits	Financial audit	20 February 2020
Managing coal seam gas activities	Performance audit	18 February 2020
Queensland Government state finances 2018-19 results of financial audits	Financial audit	11 February 2020
Effectiveness of the State Penalties Enforcement Registry ICT reform	Performance audit	6 February 2020

South Australian Auditor-General’s Department

South Australian Auditor-General’s Department (SA AGD)	Type of report	Publication date
Report 6 of 2020: Update to the annual report for the year ended 30 June 2019	Financial audit	24 March 2020
Report 5 of 2020: Consolidated Financial Report review	Financial audit	3 March 2020
Report 4 of 2020: Examination of credit card use and management: The Coorong District Council	Performance audit	3 March 2020
Report 3 of 2020: Examination of credit card use and management: City of Playford	Performance audit	3 March 2020
Report 2 of 2020: Examination of credit card use and management: City of Charles Sturt	Performance audit	3 March 2020
Report 1 of 2020: Adelaide Oval redevelopment for the designated period 1 July 2019 to 31 December 2019	Financial audit	3 March 2020

Victorian Auditor-General’s Office

Victorian Auditor-General’s Office (VAGO)	Type of report	Publication date
Ravenhall Prison: Rehabilitating and Reintegrating Prisoners	Performance Audit	19 March 2020
Freight outcomes from Regional Rail Upgrades	Performance Audit	18 March 2020
Managing Development Contributions	Performance audit	18 March 2020

Western Australia Office of the Auditor-General

Western Australia Office of the Auditor-General (WA OAG)	Type of report	Publication date
Controls over Purchasing Cards	Performance audit	25 March 2020
Audit Results Report - Annual 2018-19 Financial Audits of Local Government Entities	Financial audit	11 March 2020
Opinion on Ministerial Notification-Report 15:2019-20	Ministerial Notification	28 February 2020
Opinion on Ministerial Notification-Report 14:2019-20	Ministerial Notificiation	31 January 2020

New Zealand Office of the Auditor-General

New Zealand Office of the Auditor-General (NZ OAG)	Type of report	Publication date
Reflecting on our work about water management	Report	12 February 2020
Inquiry into Alpine Energy Limited’s decision to install solar equipment at a senior executive’s house	Inquiry	19 December 2019

Other Useful Resources

Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)

Recent media releases and publications included:

Name	Publication date
Managing corrupt conduct during the COVID-19 outbreak	2 April 2020
ICAC lobbying public inquiry to focus on roles and perspectives of government officials	13 February 2020
Conflict of interest – new FAQs and sample policy*	7 January 2020

*For more information refer to Hot Topics section.

Name	Publication date
ACNC welcomes ANAO performance report and agrees with all recommendations	31 March 2020
Charity regulator extends reporting deadlines to assist charities	26 March 2020
Government's Response to the ACNC Legislation Review	6 March 2020
Supporting charities responding to the bushfires	21 February 2020