The Role of the Auditor General
Colin Murphy
Auditor General for Western Australia
The role of the Auditor General
• Independent and
impartial
• Provide information
to Parliament
• Public sector
accountability
• Serving the public
interest
WA Public
Parliament
Executive
Government
Agencies
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The Auditor General
…over 180 years of history in just one slide!
“The role of the Auditor General
is a historic one. It is an integral
part of the Westminster system of
Parliamentary democracy.”
1989 Burt Commission on Accountability
November 1829:
Captain Stirling appointed the
colony’s first Commission of Audit
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How the OAG contributes to
transparency and accountability
A window into what the public sector does
A report card on how well they are doing
An assurance: is what they are saying true?
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Auditor General Act 2006
• Establishes Auditor General as
independent officer of Parliament
• Broad access to information
• Can examine agency performance
& compliance
• Can investigate public money &
property
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Auditor General Act 2006
Under Sections 17 and 18 of the
Auditor General Act 2006:
The Auditor General has powers to investigate;
“any matter relating to public money…or to public
property”
“the efficiency and effectiveness with which a
related entity of an agency performs functions”
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What the Auditor General audits
A continuum, ranging from finance statement opinions to providing
assurance about agency controls and compliance and
reporting on agency performance
Annual
Assurance
Audit
Issue opinions
on financial
statements,
controls and Key
Performance
Indicators (KPIs)
Across Government
Benchmarking Audit
Provide a way of
comparing
performance across
areas of common
business practice
Controls and
Compliance Audits
and IS Audit
Review aspects of
public
administration
affecting controls
and compliance
with legislation and
standards
Performance Audit
Provide Parliament
with analysis of
program and
operational
performance,
recommending
opportunities for
improvement when
appropriate
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Across Government Benchmarking Audits
Recent reports:
 Gifts and Benefits
 Employee Accounts Payable Payments
 Management of Attractive Assets
 Accuracy of Leave Records
 Act of Grace and Like Payments
 Property and Money Held for Specific Purposes
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Controls and Compliance Audits
Recent reports:
 Business Continuity Management by Ports
 Fraud Prevention and Detection
 Conflicts of Interest – Gifts and Benefits
 Records Management
 Government Purchasing Cards
 Regulation of Firearms
Information Systems Audits
Recent reports:
 Security Standards Gap Analysis
 Security of Online Transactions
 Cyber Attacks
 Management of Databases and
Portable Storage Devices
 Capability Maturity Models
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Performance Audits
Recent reports:




Native Forest Products
Delivering WA’s Ambulance Services
Forensic Services
Management of the Rail Freight
Network Lease
 Homelessness
 Major Capital Projects
 Police Recruits
Audit Approach
• Independent and objective
• Criteria driven
• Evidence based
• Compliance with auditing
and assurance standards
• No surprises
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Relationship with Parliament
• Parliament is the Auditor General’s key client
• Key Committees
−
Public Accounts Committee
− Estimates and Financial Operations Committee
− Joint Standing Committee on Audit
• Parliamentary surveys
• Have regard to the audit priorities of Parliament
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The Integrity Coordinating Group
Independent officers collaborating to
promote and strengthen integrity in
Western Australian public bodies
www.icg.wa.gov.au
Purpose of the ICG
• Fostering collaboration between public sector integrity
bodies
• Encouraging & supporting research, evaluation and
policy discussion to monitor the implementation of
integrity and accountability mechanisms
• Inspiring operational cooperation and consistency in
communication, education and support in public sector
organisations about integrity and accountability matters
Conclusion
• Integral part of Western Australia’s
system of government accountability and
transparency
• Independence is paramount
• Unique and historic role
• Serving the Public Interest
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Thank you
Colin Murphy
Auditor General for Western Australia
Perth BC, PO Box 8489, Perth 6849
6557 7500
Website www.audit.wa.gov.au
Email
info@audit.wa.gov.au
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Audit topic selection
OAG Performance Audit Topic Selection Framework
OAG
Impact
Materiality
Context
Parliament
List of topic ideas based
on internal and external
suggestions
Community
Develop Topic ideas, review and prioritise against
topic selection criteria:
Auditability
Coverage
Social &
Environmental
Governance
Review prioritised topics against KPI coverage
Economic
Development
Service
Delivery
Risk
Agencies
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Audit Quality Assurance Framework
The ‘Quality Assurance Rainbow’
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