The Canberra Liberals have called on the ACT Government to undertake an independent audit of all procurement decisions made by the ACT Government over the past five years.
Last week, the ACT Integrity Commission urged building and construction tenderers to let them know about any suspected improper conduct in ACT Government procurement processes, following the Auditor-General’s report in December that the procurement for the Campbell Primary School Modernisation Project lacked probity. Other procurement processes may be corrupt, the Commission believed.
Elizabeth Lee, leader of the Canberra Liberals, wrote to Chief Minister Andrew Barr today saying Canberrans deserved assurances “that public funds are being expended with probity, transparency, and integrity”.
“It is extremely concerning that the Integrity Commissioner has come out very publicly saying that issues with procurement processes in the ACT Government might be endemic,” Ms Lee said.
“An independent audit of procurement decisions made by the ACT Government over the last five years is necessary to make sure the issues seen with the Campbell Primary School procurement process are not replicated across other directorates.”
In last week’s annual reports hearings, Yvette Berry, ACT Education Minister, said the government would respond to the Auditor-General’s report in due course.
“The ACT Government and every directorate of the government wants to ensure that there is appropriate probity and transparency around all of the work that we do, and so we take very seriously the recommendations of the Auditor-General in reports such as this one.”
The Education Directorate would conduct an audit to make sure that previous procurement processes met with the ACT Government’s procurement guidelines, and seek to make improvements, Ms Berry said. She acknowledged the Auditor-General had recommended those processes could be tightened up, and the government would consider those processes.
“We’ve already done a lot of work already following the Auditor-General’s report in improving those for future projects,” Ms Berry said.
Education Directorate chief Katy Haire said her bureau had begun looking at improvements: improving communication protocols, the role of probity advisers and change management processes; improving record keeping; reviewing protocols for communication for tenderers and stakeholders; identifying areas for training and professional development; and looking at roles of probity advisers in all major projects.
The Education Directorate did not refer the matter to the Integrity Commission when it received the Auditor-General’s report, to Ms Lee’s astonishment.
“We didn’t consider that it met the requirements for a referral to the Integrity Commissioner,” Ms Haire said: serious misconduct and corruption.
“As far as I am aware, there was nothing that was done wrong, and the procurement processes were followed,” Ms Berry said.
“It is astounding to hear the Education Minister say that in her view nothing was done wrong, and all processes were followed, even after the Auditor-General’s report was published,” Ms Lee said.
“This shows that the ACT Labor-Greens Government is incapable of taking this matter seriously, and is instead hoping to sweep it under the carpet and move on.
“If the Chief Minister and his government have nothing to hide, they must agree to this independent audit of procurement decisions.”
Government response
A spokesperson said the ACT Government and relevant Directorates and Agencies had worked constructively with the Auditor-General and the ACT Audit Office throughout the performance audit, and would work with the Integrity Commission if an investigation were undertaken.
“The ACT Government broadly welcomes the recommendations in the Performance Audit Report by the ACT Auditor-General, and is currently developing a formal response to those recommendations,” the spokesperson said.
The ACT Government will continue to monitor and enhance the ACT Government’s Procurement Framework, and will commission an examination of select procurements across directorates, where delegates have departed from a panel’s recommendation, to inform any further enhancements to the Framework and education and support for procurement practitioners, the spokesperson said.
