The Department of Finance is actively contributing to the development of an international public sector climate disclosure standard through the Sustainability Implementation Forum (SIF).
The SIF was established by the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) to engage with public sector entities from around the world in the development of its inaugural IPSASB Sustainability Reporting Standard (IPSASB SRS™) for public sector climate-related disclosures.
The upcoming IPSASB SRS on climate-related disclosures is being developed for public sector entities, but draws and aligns guidance where appropriate with the international private sector climate disclosure standard (called IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures). Once finalised, the IPSASB’s SRS can be adopted by jurisdictions around the world, to facilitate transparency of climate action by public sector entities.
The second meeting of the SIF was held on 30 May 2025, with representatives from Australia (Department of Finance and NSW Treasury), Canada, Brazil, New Zealand, and international bodies. Finance was invited to participate as we are a leader in public sector climate disclosure.
Finance’s experience in leading the Commonwealth Climate Disclosure initiative enabled us to provide guidance on technical topics like materiality and scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions.
The IPSASB is working toward finalisation of its international public sector climate disclosure standard for the second half of 2025, with implementation to commence in 2026 at the earliest. Finance will continue to contribute our experience and expertise in this forum.
