The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO)an investigation is underway into certain Commonwealth activities following allegations of fraud.
“During the audit, the ANAO was informed by the Department of Finance of allegations of fraud relating to the procurement of IT contractors,” it said.
The research was conducted to “assess the extent to which the establishment and use of three IT- related procurement and regulatory committees supported the achievement of value for money outcomes.”
The ANAO reviewed the now closed IT services committee established by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications, the digital marketplace framework created by the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA), and the overall Australian Government $1 billion scheme managed by the DTA.
The combined reported value of contracts under the agreements exceeds $2.8 billion.
The ANAO examined a sample of 15 procurements. Five of these were made under the IBM by the Australian Electoral Commission, the Australian Taxation Office, the Department of Home Affairs, the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources and Services Australia.
The inquiry found that Infrastructure complied with the Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPR) and adopted relevant guidance when setting up its committee, but could have adopted a more robust approach to considering price, quality and risk.
The ANAO said, however, that the DTA did not comply with all the rules, but that it adopted a number of “good practices”.
The DTA has since corrected its deficiencies to comply with the minimum CPR requirements, the ANAO said. The DTA should, however, have been more proactive in identifying and managing key risks and contingencies in the development process, the ANAO said.
The ANAO said the five entities documented the purpose of the IBM procurement, but said the ATO did not fully demonstrate that the conditions for a restricted tender were met. According to previous audit information, 78,150 contracts were advertised on AusTender in 2018-19 with a total value of $64.5 billion. Contracts in the technology , broadcasting and telecommunications category accounted for 6.1% of the total value of contracts reported, representing more than $3.9 billion.
