Chapter 4: Sustainable Government Finances

Budget estimates, process and documentation prepared and delivered in an accurate and timely manner.

Budget estimates, process and documentation delivered in accordance with the requirements and timetable agreed to by Cabinet.

Achieved
Ministers have expressed satisfaction with the quality and timeliness of estimates, advice and documentation.

Accurate budget estimates.

0.5 per cent difference between revised estimated expenses at Budget time and final outcome.³

Achieved
On an accrual expenses basis the difference was less than 0.1 per cent (and on a cash payments basis the difference was 0.6 per cent).

Government is well informed by timely and accurate costings.

Expenditure Review Committee and Budget deadlines met for provision of information and analysis.

Achieved
The department provided over 1,000 costings within deadlines to assist budget decision making.

Effective, timely and appropriate advice to government agencies on Budget processes.

Stakeholders provide feedback that Budget process advice is effective.

Achieved
Agency and other stakeholder feedback indicates that advice to agencies on budget processes was effective, timely and appropriate.

Expenditure Review of government programs completed.

Review completed to allow Cabinet to consider further outcomes before publication of the 2008-09 MYEFO.

Achieved
Finance provided advice on all aspects of government expenditure to Ministers in the lead up to the 2008-09 MYEFO, and at later stages in the 2009-10 Budget process, including over 90 detailed program analyses.

Improving economic and fiscal stabilisation of Pacific Island states and Indonesia.

Deployment of budget advisor staff with relevant countries as agreed.

Achieved
The department located three officials in Indonesia under the Australia-Indonesia Finance Engagement Strategy and hosted five Indonesian officers with placements in Finance. The department also located ten officers in Papua New Guinea under the Strongim Gavman Program, three in the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands, and there were six exchanges with Papua New Guinea under the PNG-Australia Finance Twinning Scheme. Finance coordinated all of these deployments in partnership with AusAID. The direct engagement of one official in Nauru concluded in June 2009.

Improved governance across government agencies through effective, timely and appropriate advice to government agencies on legislative and financial instruments.

Over the forward years (2009-12), the numbers of Certificate of Compliance breaches across agencies and CAC Act bodies declines.

Finance will assess performance against this target following the receipt, on 15 October 2009, of Certificates of Compliance from FMA Act Agencies and Compliance Reports from CAC Act bodies, covering the 2008-09 financial year.

As agreed by the government in its December 2008 response to the Review of Operation Sunlight: Overhauling Budgetary Transparency, Finance will prepare and table in the Parliament an aggregate analysis of Certificates of Compliance prepared by FMA Act agencies. The first report will cover the 2008-09 financial year.

Operation Sunlight initiatives improve the transparency of Budget information.

Stakeholders provide feedback that Budget information is more useful.

Achieved
Finance made improvements to the Budget Papers and to agencies’ Portfolio Budget Statements for the 2009-10 Budget to provide more comprehensive information on agencies’ funding and their planned performance.
Several Senate Committees included the following favourable comments in their 2009-10 Budget Estimates reports:

• The Community Affairs Legislation Committee noted the benefits of the streamlined Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs Portfolio outcome structure, including the closer links to client service, greater transparency and management efficiencies;
• The Education, Employment and Workplace Relations Legislation Committee noted the benefits of reporting expenditure at program level, the reduction of the number of outcomes, and the use of key performance indicators and targets to assess and monitor the achievement of outcomes; and
• The Finance and Public Administration Legislation Committee commended the inclusion of program level information for the portfolios for which it has oversight responsibility.

In addition, the Parliamentary Library in its Budget Review 2009-10 Research Paper stated that the introduction of program reporting was “most praiseworthy” and that the introduction of a detailed listing in Budget Paper No. 4 of estimates of agencies’ special accounts flows and balances was a “worthwhile addition”.

Strategic reviews of significant government expenditure improve the efficiency and effectiveness of programs.

The government accepts the reports from reviews and accepts the majority of recommendations from the reviews.

Achieved
The two strategic reviews commissioned by the government in December 2007 – the Strategic Review of Climate Change Programs (released on 31 July 2008) and the Strategic Review of the Administration of Australian Government Grant Programs⁴ – were completed. The government accepted the recommendations of both reports either in full or with some modification.

Following Gateway Review, high-risk major projects of government follow best practice implementation methodologies.

90 per cent of Senior Responsible Officials identify that Gateway has contributed constructively to their project.

Achieved
Finance surveys Senior Responsible Officials at the conclusion of each Gateway Review and 95 per cent identified that Gateway contributed constructively to their project or program.

Financial Statements for Budget documentation prepared in an accurate and timely manner.

Financial statements finalised in accordance with the timetable agreed by the Treasurer and the Minister for Finance and Deregulation.

Achieved
The department finalised the financial statements for Budget documentation in accordance with agreed timeframes.

Appropriation Bills correctly reflect funding requirements for all Australian Government decisions.

Appropriations Bills are finalised in time to be introduced into Parliament on the date agreed by the Australian Government.

Achieved
The additional estimates, Supplementary Bills and the additional Supplementary Bills for 2008-09, and the Budget Bills for 2009-10 were passed, received Royal Assent and funds were made available to agencies on time.

Monthly general government sector financial reports to be prepared in a timely manner.

Statements (excluding July) provided to the Minister on average, within 21 days of month end to allow publication within 30 days of month end.

Not achieved
Finance took an average of 36 days to provide the statements to the Minister and 48 days to publish the statements. This was an improvement of 26 days on the average for the 2007-08 financial year. Finance will continue to seek further improvement in 2009-10.

Consolidated financial statements provided by the Minister to the Auditor-General in accordance with the FMA Act.

Annual Consolidated Financial statements completed and provided to the Auditor-General by 30 November.

Achieved
The department provided the 2007-08 Consolidated Financial Statements to the Auditor-General on 27 November 2008 and the Audit Report was issued on 28 November 2008.

The derived underlying cash balance is provided to the government in a timely manner.

Available to the government within five days of the end of the financial year.

Achieved
Finance produced the derived underlying cash balance within five days of the end of the financial year.

Policy advice on superannuation arrangements for Australian Government civilian employees, current and former Members of Parliament, and Australian Government Asset Funds meets the needs of the government.

Advice supports ministerial decision-making.

Scoping study to review superannuation administration arrangements conducted by 30 June 2009.

Achieved
Ministers expressed satisfaction with the quality, timeliness and relevance of Finance’s advice.

Achieved
The scoping study was completed by 30 June 2009.

The unfunded superannuation liability and associated administered expenses managed effectively.

Unfunded superannuation liabilities reviewed in the triennial long-term cost report as at 30 June 2008.

Agency employer superannuation costs reviewed annually.

Achieved
The Long Term Cost Report was tabled and publicly released on 22 May 2009.

Achieved
Finance completed the annual review of agency employer superannuation costs and sent the advice to agencies on 25 February 2009.

Parliamentary Contributory Superannuation Scheme administered in line with industry standards.

Issue of statements by 31 December 2008.

Scheme members satisfied with the service provision.

Achieved
Finance issued all members’ statements by 30 September 2008.

Achieved
Scheme members indicated that they were satisfied with Finance’s service provision.

Government satisfied with the quality and value of evaluations and audits.

Formal responses indicate that reports are comprehensive and evidence-based in establishing recommendations.

Achieved
Finance has received positive feedback in the formal responses from agencies on evaluation and audit reports completed during 2008-09.

Recommendations of evaluations and audits are agreed by agencies and implemented by program managers.

Over 80 per cent of evaluation and audit recommendations agreed by agencies in reports and followed up within 12 months.

Achieved
Finance made 76 recommendations in evaluation and audit reports completed in 2008-09. Over 97 per cent of these were accepted by agencies. During 2008-09, Finance followed up the status of all 51 recommendations made in the six evaluation and audit reports completed in 2007-08.

Timeliness of evaluations and audits.

Over 85 per cent of audits and evaluations are commenced in the period specified in the Work Program and reported to agencies within 12 months.

Achieved
Finance commenced ten out of 11 evaluations and audits (90 per cent). Of these, five were reported to agencies within 12 months of commencing and five were ongoing at the end of the financial year. Finance expects to report four of the remaining five ongoing evaluations and audits (80 per cent) to agencies within 12 months of their commencement.

Australian Government’s deregulation agenda implemented.

One-in One-out process implemented by September 2008.

Achieved
Finance implemented the One-in One-out process in 2007-08 and issued additional guidance on the process to agencies on 5 January 2009. The department continues to work with agencies to assist them to meet the requirements of the policy.

Satisfaction with the quality, relevance and timeliness of OBPR's advice and training on the Australian Government best practice regulation and consultation requirements and the Council of Australian Governments regulatory impact statement requirements.

80 per cent of participants on regulatory impact analysis courses rate the training course as ‘excellent’ to ‘very good’.

Achieved
97 per cent of participants rated the training course they attended as either ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’.

Secretariat to the COAG Business Regulation and Competition Working Group supports the agenda.

Secretariat assists co-chairs of the Working Group to implement the agenda.

Achieved
During 2008-09, the Finance secretariat arranged twelve meetings of the Business Regulation and Competition Working Group (BRCWG).  These meetings facilitated discussion and decisions on regulatory reforms and identified areas requiring further Commonwealth or state action.  The department provided briefings to the co-chairs, arranged for papers on the BRCWG’s reform agenda to be presented to meetings and prepared status reports on the progress of reforms.  The department also assisted the co-chairs to draft COAG’s National Partnership Agreement to Deliver a Seamless National Economy, which came into effect on 27 February 2009.