Notification of a new inquiry into Victoria's Audit Act 1994

Ms PENNICUIK (Southern Metropolitan) -- As a new member of the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee I look forward to participating in the review of the Audit Act 1994, which is now 15 years old. As Mr Dalla-Riva and Mr Rich-Phillips have said, it is in need of review, particularly following the review of the financial frameworks which will look at the rewrite of the Financial Management Act. There is an interaction between those acts which will be taken into consideration with a review of the Audit Act.

As Mr Dalla-Riva and Mr Rich-Phillips have said, the Auditor-General is a very important officer of the Parliament and a very important figure for the Victorian public in auditing the accounts of the state. In the 15 years since 1994 there has been a growth in the use of public-private partnerships, for example, and alliance models for state government procurement and projects. Those arrangements are often shrouded in commercial-in-confidence, and the financial arrangements that are contracted into for many years to come are not open to the public. It is very important in terms of the review of the Audit Act that those arrangements are able to be fully audited by the Auditor-General, which is not the case at present.

There are other aspects of the Audit Act that need to be looked at in terms of the reviews that have happened in other jurisdictions in Australia and internationally. I look forward to participating in that exercise. As Mr Rich-Phillips said, all members should be watching closely. I think the discussion paper is due to come out around the end of this year.