The (JCPAA) has expanded an existing , to examine public sector IT projects more widely.
Committee Chair, , said that “lessons must be drawn from both stages of the failed attempt to privatise and procure a new visa processing system for ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Affairs, and it’s already clear that broader scrutiny of other large-scale public sector IT projects is warranted.
“We will get to the bottom of what happened with the visa processing debacle, and how and why nearly $150 million was wasted. There are broader lessons to be drawn however into appropriate practices for new IT projects and expenditure in the public sector, including capability-building, advice to government, probity and ethics, and value for money for the Commonwealth.”
In addition to both stages of the failed visa processing privatisation, including – Procurement of the Permissions Capability, the inquiry will now also consider others reports including:
- – Administration of the Parliamentary Expense Management System
- – Establishment of the Workforce Australia Services Panel, specifically on the implementation of a new digital services platform to support employment services.
Additional areas of focus for the Committee will include:
- The Digital Transformation Agency’s role in evaluating public sector IT investment.
- Department of Finance assessments of certain high value procurements.
- The Australian Public Service Digital Profession’s role in building digital capability in the public service.
- Any lessons learnt from previous large-scale IT projects.
Details of the revised inquiry, including the new terms of reference and details on hearings, will be made available on the .
The Committee invites submissions to the inquiry addressing the revised terms of reference to be received by Friday 12 April 2024. The Committee is reminding witnesses of interest of its power to summon witnesses should that be required.
