Chapter 4
Management and accountability
Financial management
From 1 July 2008, the office transferred the management of its financial reporting from an outsourced provider to an internal operation. This activity provided substantial challenges for our finance team, including the establishment of appropriate audit controls, strengthening the team's skills and capabilities, and the introduction of robust frameworks for reporting. The transition proved successful and provided the office with some financial gains and a significant improvement in control over the quality of financial information.
Financial performance
Revenue received from ordinary activities was $20.756 million in 2008–09. The office received $19.364 million in appropriation revenue, $1.483 million more than in 2007–08. Following the Northern Territory Emergency Response (NTER) the office received $0.202 million in 2008–09, and will receive a further $0.800 million as a prior year's output in 2009–10 to provide services both to Indigenous communities and other people who may wish to make complaints about the actions of agencies involved in delivering the NTER. The funding also enabled us to assist NTER agencies to develop better complaint–handling procedures. The office received $0.566 million as a result of its acquittal of the NTER 2007–08 no win–no loss funding, that is, as delayed funding for the 2007–08 financial year. The office received further funding in 2008–09 of $0.261 million at Additional Estimates for the 'Excision and refugee status processing' arrangements. The funding allows the office to provide independent external scrutiny of the processing by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) of non–statutory refugee status claims by offshore entry persons. DIAC is the lead agency for the measure.
Total expenses for the office were $19.894 million resulting in a profit in 2008–09 of $0.929 million. This is primarily due to receiving the $0.566 million in NTER no win–no loss funding related to 2007–08 in 2008–09.
Financial position
The office's total equity—sum of the office's assets less its liabilities—has increased by $0.723 million due mainly to the surplus in 2008–09.
The Ombudsman's office is a small office with a standard suite of assets, such as information technology items, which require no special management measures beyond those which are standard in an accrual–based budgeting framework.
The office's total assets increased to $8.872 million in 2008–09 from $7.177 million in 2007–08. The increases arose primarily out of an increase in undrawn appropriations. The office's assets by category at 30 June 2009 were:
- receivables (amounts due to be paid to the—75% of total assets)
- infrastructure, plant and equipment (15%)
- intangibles (non–physical assets such as software—5%)
- other non–financial assets (relating to prepayments—4%)
- cash (1%).
The balance sheet shows cash holdings of $0.128 million ($0.160 million in 2007–08). The office's appropriation receivable also increased by $1.465 million, from $4.832 million in 2007–08 to $6.297 million in 2008–09.
The office's non–financial assets increased to $2.125 million in 2008–09 ($1.873 million in 2007–08), primarily due to purchases of information technology assets and prepaying our suppliers.
Total liabilities increased by $0.972 million to $5.665 million in 2008–09 ($4.693 million in 2007–08). The change in liabilities was primarily due to an increase in employee provisions and other payables.
Procurement and grants
The Ombudsman's office is committed to achieving the best value for money in its procurement practices. Purchasing practices and procedures are consistent with the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines and are set out in the Ombudsman's Chief Executive's Instructions.
The office published its Annual Procurement Plan on the AusTender website (as required under the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines) to facilitate early procurement planning and to draw to the attention of businesses our planned procurement for the 2008–09 financial year.
The office engages consultants when the expertise required is not available within the organisation, or when the specialised skills required are not available without diverting resources from other higher priority tasks. In accordance with procurement guidelines, consultants are selected by open tender, panel arrangements, select tender or direct sourcing. The main categories of contracts relate to information technology, financial services, human resources services, governance and legal advice.
During 2008–09 the office entered into three new consultancy contracts involving total actual expenditure of $164,721. In addition, three ongoing consultancy contracts were active during 2008–09, involving total actual expenditure of $71,574. See Appendix 5 for details of new consultancy contracts. (Details are also available at www.ombudsman.gov.au.)
Annual reports contain information about actual expenditure on contracts for consultancies. Information on the value of contracts and consultancies is available on the AusTender website (www.tenders.gov.au).
Table 4.3 shows expenditure on consultancy contracts over the three most recent financial years.
TABLE 4.3 Expenditure on consultancy contracts, 2006–07 to 2008–09
Year |
Number of consultancy contracts |
Total actual expenditure |
|---|---|---|
2006–07 |
7 |
$104,395 |
2007–08 |
8 |
$248,678 |
2008–09 |
6 |
$236,295 |
The office's standard contract templates include an ANAO audit clause. All contracts signed in the reporting period of $100,000 or more (including GST) provided for the Auditor–General to have access to the contractor's premises.
The office did not exempt any contracts or standing offers that cost more than $10,000 (including GST) from publication in AusTender.
The office did not administer any grant programs during 2008–09.
Top
Previous
page | Next page—Chapter 4–Information management and work practices 