An audit of the contestability program managed by the Department of Finance to improve the efficiency of service delivery across the Australian Public Service has found it to have been a success.
In his report, Efficiency through Contestability Program, Auditor-General, Grant Hehir tested the program’s effectiveness in supporting entities to improve the delivery of their functions.
“The Efficiency Through Contestability Program was effective in supporting entities to review the efficient and effective delivery of Government functions,” Mr Hehir said.
He said the program was introduced in 2014–15, initially as a pilot, with the aim of applying the most efficient way of designing and delivering Government policies, programs and services.
It ceased on 30 June 2017 after the Minister for Finance observed that most portfolios had been reviewed through the program and that “functional and efficiency review outcomes have achieved savings of around $5 billion from 2014–15 to 2020–21”.
Mr Hehir said the program was effective in supporting entities to review the efficient and effective delivery of Government functions.
He said it had produced many recommendations to improve the efficiency of administrative systems and substantial Budget savings had been realised.
“(The Department of) Finance effectively designed, administered and supported the implementation of many elements of the program,” Mr Hehir said.
“The Department’s planning was sound and it provided adequate support and guidance to entities conducting reviews.
“Finance undertook planned evaluation, and in December 2017 concluded that the program supported Budget repair in excess of $5 billion over the forward estimates.”
He noted that the reviews by the entities made a large number of recommendations to improve delivery of Government functions and/or increase operational and administrative efficiencies.
“Many recommendations have been accepted or are being considered by Government, and the projected total net savings to Budget greatly exceed the cost of conducting the reviews,” Mr Hehir said.
The 105-page audit report can be accessed at this PS News link and the audit team was Tracey Martin, Elizabeth Wedgwood, Irena Korenevski, Jacqueline Hedditch, Lucy Donnelly, Grace Guilfoyle, Nikol Jepson, David Hokin and Andrew Morris.
