FOI 21.22 0868 Decision Documents.pdf

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DOCUMENT 2
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DOCUMENT 3
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DOCUMENT 4
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•
ensure compliance with the Risk Management Rules 2013 and provide advice to
the Board regarding the sign-off of the Risk Management Declaration for annual
provision to the Ministerial Council .
Internal Control
•
review whether management’s approach to maintaining an effective internal
control framework, including over external parties such as contractors and
advisers, is sound and effective;
•
review whether management has in place relevant policies and procedures,
including Chief Executive’s Instructions or their equivalent, and that these are
periodically reviewed and updated;
•
determine whether the appropriate processes are in place to assess, at least once
a year, whether key policies and procedures are complied with;
•
review whether appropriate policies and supporting procedures are in place for the
management and exercise of delegations;
•
consider how management identifies any required changes to the design or
implementation of key internal controls; and
•
assess whether management has taken steps to embed a culture which is
committed to ethical and lawful behaviour.
Financial Statements
•
satisfy itself that the financial statements are supported by appropriate
management sign-off on the statements and on the adequacy of key internal
controls;
•
review the financial statements and provide advice to the Chief Executive and the
Board; (including whether appropriate action has been taken in response to audit
recommendations and adjustments to the draft financial statements) and
recommend their signing by the Board;
•
review the processes in place designed to ensure that financial information
included in the National Disability Insurance Agency’s annual report is consistent
with the signed financial statements;
•
review significant accounting and reporting issues, including complex or unusual
transactions, highly judgemental areas and recent professional and regulatory
pronouncements and understand their impact on the financial statements;
•
review the annual financial statements and consider whether they are complete
and consistent with information known to Committee members; and
•
review annually at the time of the audit adjusted and unadjusted times noted by
the external auditor and management and as to why any items remain unadjusted.
Legislative and policy compliance
•
review the effectiveness of the system for monitoring the National Disability
Insurance Agency’s compliance with those laws, regulations and associated
government policies that the National Disability Insurance Agency must comply
with, including but not limited to: privacy; data management; quality assurance
arrangements; and Freedom of Information requirements;
•
review the operations of the organisation for efficiency and effectiveness,
including agency operations in relation to participants, providers, expert panels
and other stakeholders;
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Reporting
The committee will as often as necessary, and at least once a year, report to the
Board on its operation and activities during the year. The report should include:
• a summary of the work the committee performed to discharge its responsibilities
during the preceding year;
• a summary of the National Disability Insurance Agency’s progress in addressing
the findings and recommendations made in internal and external audit and
parliamentary committee reports;
• an overall assessment of the National Disability Insurance Agency’s risk, control
and compliance framework, including details of any significant emerging risks or
legislative changes impacting the National Disability Insurance Agency; and
• details of meetings, including the number of meetings held during the relevant
period, and the number of meetings each member attended.
The committee may, at any time, report to the Board any other matter it deems of
sufficient importance. In addition, at any time an individual committee member may
request a meeting with the Chair of the Board.
Administrative arrangements
Meetings
The committee will meet at least four times per year. A special meeting may be held
to review the agency’s annual financial statements.
The Chair is required to call a meeting if asked to do so by the Chair of the Board,
and decide if a meeting is required if requested by another member.
Planning
The committee will develop a forward meeting schedule that includes the dates,
location, and proposed agenda items for each meeting for the forthcoming year, that
cover all the responsibilities outlined in this charter.
Attendance at meetings and quorums
The quorum for meetings of the committee is three persons..
Secretariat
The Board, in consultation with the committee, will appoint a person to provide
secretariat support to the committee. The secretariat will ensure: the agenda for each
meeting is approved by the chair; the agenda and supporting papers are circulated, at
least one week before the meeting; and the minutes of the meetings are prepared
and maintained. Minutes must be reviewed by the Chair and circulated within two
weeks of the meeting to each member and committee observers, as appropriate.
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SENSITIVE: OFFICIAL AUDIT AND RISK COMMITTEE MINUTES
MINUTES
NDIA Board
Audit and Risk Committee Meeting 1/2014
12 February 2014
Swissotel Sydney
Attendance
Present
 John Hill PSM, Chair
 John Walsh AM, Member
 Martin Laverty, Member
 Helen Williams AO, Member
 Marian Micalizzi, Member
Officials in Attendance
 David Bowen, Chief Executive Officer
 Jo-Ann Rose, Chief Finance Officer
 Helen McKenna, Chief Risk Officer
 Louise Glanville, incoming Corporate Secretary
 Alexandra Madsen, Board Secretariat
Others in attendance
 Ian Goodwin, Australian National Audit Office (ANAO)
 Carla Jago, ANAO
Meeting Commencement and Conclusion Times
The Committee meeting was held from 2:00 pm – 5.30 pm on Wednesday 12 February 2014.
Item 1
Welcome; apologies
 The Chair welcomed Committee members to the meeting and thanked members for their
attendance.
 The Committee acknowledged the traditional owners of the land and paid respect to
Elders, both past and present.
 The Committee also acknowledged that the purpose of the National Disability Insurance
Scheme (NDIS) is to achieve the full social and economic participation of people with
disability and certainty for people with disability, and their carers, of reasonable and
necessary care over the participant’s lifetime as set out in the objects of the National
Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (the NDIS Act).
 The Committee further acknowledged the objectives of the Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities.
SENSITIVE: OFFICIAL AUDIT AND RISK COMMITTEE MINUTES

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DOCUMENT 8
Audit, Risk & Finance Committee Charter
The  Board  has  established  an  Audit,  Risk  and  Finance  Committee  in  compliance  with
section 45 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act)
and  rule 17  of  the  Public  Governance,  Performance  and  Accountability  Rule  2014  (PGPA
Rule).
Under rule 17 of the PGPA Rule, the Board must, by written charter, determine the functions
of the committee.
1. Purpose
The Committee is a sub-committee of the Board of the National Disability Insurance Agency
(Agency),  and  is  established  to  assist  the  Board  discharge  its  responsibilities  under  the
National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 and the PGPA Act including by reviewing the
appropriateness of the Board’s financial reporting, performance reporting, risk oversight and
management and internal controls, for the Agency.
2. Authority
The Board authorises the Committee, within its responsibilities, to:
a) Obtain any information it requires from any official or external contractor to the Agency
(subject to any legal obligation to protect information);
b) Discuss any matters with the external auditor (ANAO), or other external parties (subject
to confidentiality considerations);
c) Request  the  attendance  of  any  official,  including  members  of the  Board,  at  Committee
meetings; and
d) Obtain legal or other professional advice at Agency expense, as considered necessary
to meet its responsibilities.
3. Membership
a) The Audit, Risk & Finance Committee comprises 5 Members, appointed on resolution
of the Board.
b) The Board will appoint a Non-Executive Director as the Chair of the Committee and a
Non-Executive  Director  as the  Deputy  Chair.  The  Chair  and  Deputy  Chair must  be
Directors of the Board.
c)
Where the  Chair  of the  Committee  is  unable to attend  a  meeting,  the  Deputy  Chair
will preside over that meeting.
d) The  Chair  of  the  Board  is  entitled  to  attend  Committee  meetings,  but  will  not  be  a
Member of the Committee.
e) Board  Directors,  Chief  Financial  Officer,  Chief  Risk  Officer,  Scheme  Actuary,  Chief
Information  Officer,  Internal  Auditor  and  other  management  representatives  or
external advisors may attend meetings as advisers or observers, on the invitation of
the Chair, but will not be Members of the Committee.
f)
A representative of the ANAO will be invited to attend meetings as an observer.
g)
The  Members,  taken  collectively,  will  have  a  broad  range  of  skills  and  experience
relevant  to  the  operations  of  the  Agency  and  the  disability  sector  with  at  least  one
Member  of  the  Committee  having  significant  accounting  or  related  financial
management experience with an understanding of accounting and auditing standards
in a public sector context.
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h)  Members will be appointed for an initial period not exceeding  3 years.  Members may
be  re-appointed  after  a  formal  review  of  their  performance,  for  a  further  period  not
exceeding 3 years (i.e. 2 term limit).
4.  Functions
The Committee is not responsible for executive management functions of the Agency and as
such has no executive powers or delegations.
The Committee will engage with management in a constructive and professional manner in
discharging its responsibilities and formulating its advice to the Board.
Financial Reporting
a)  Assess  the  interim  and  annual  financial  statements  and  provide  advice  to  the  Board;
(including recommending their signing). In particular, the committee will:
  Assess  the  Agency’s  compliance  with  accounting  standards,  including  an
assessment of the appropriateness of accounting policies and disclosures;
  Assess areas of significant judgement and financial statement balances that require
estimation;
  Assess any significant changes to accounting policies and practices, (by May of each
year); and
  Assess whether appropriate management action has been taken in response to any
issues  raised  by  the  ANAO,  including  findings,  financial  statement  adjustments,
revised disclosures or other recommendations;
b)  Provide guidance to the Agency on the types and frequency of financial information to be
provided to the Board;
c)  Provide  guidance  to  the  Agency  on  the    reporting  of  metrics  that  reflect  measures  of
operational and network efficiency;
d)  Monitor the standard and relevance of financial information provided to the Board;
e)  Assess the processes in place designed to ensure that financial information included in
the Agency Annual Report is consistent with the signed financial statements;
f)  Satisfy itself that the financial statements and notes thereto are supported by appropriate
management sign-off and that  the systems of internal controls and risk management are
adequate;
g)  Provide  advice  to  the  Board  regarding  the  issue  of  the  Agency  annual  Certificate  of
Compliance, or equivalent report; and
h)  Discuss with the ANAO the Auditor’s judgments about the quality of Agency accounting
policies and processes for the preparation of the Financial Statements.
Performance Reporting
a)  Satisfy itself that the Agency has a framework for managing performance  and reporting
it to the Board and externally that is appropriately  linked to organisation objectives and
outcomes;
b)  Review  the  performance  reporting  framework  for  the  selection  of  key  performance
indicators and other performance measures and metrics;
c)  Advise  the  Board  of  actions  that  could  be  taken  on  significant  matters  of  concern  or
significant opportunities for improvement that are mentioned in internal  or external audit
reviews and report;
d)  Investigate    any  issues  relating  to  Agency  performance  that  the  Committee  considers
warrant  review  or  investigation,  or  that  are    referred  to  the  Committee  by  the  Board  or
other Committees of the Board; and
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e) Assess the proposed reporting of Agency performance to ensure that the information is
consistent with reported financial information.
Risk Oversight and Management
a) Assess  whether  the  Agency  has  in  place  systems,  policies  and  procedures  to  promote
compliance with the Risk Management Rules and relevant sections of the Rules for the
Scheme  Actuary  2013  and  provide      advice  to  the  Board  regarding  the  sign-off  of  the
Risk Management Declaration for annual provision to the Ministerial Council.
b) Assess  whether  the  Agency  has  in  place  a  current  and  sound  enterprise  Risk
Management  Framework  and  associated  procedures  for  effective  identification  and
management  of  Agency  strategic,  business,  operational,  project  and  financial  risks,
including  fraud  and  corruption;  and  review  and    recommend  approval  of  the  Risk
Management Framework to the Board;
c) Monitor the Agency’s approach to managing the risk of fraud and corruption and review
reports  on  fraud  from  the  Agency  that  outline  any  significant  or  systemic  allegations  of
fraud, the status of any on-going investigations and any changes to identified fraud and
corruption risk across the Agency;
d) Determine whether the Agency has appropriately considered legal and compliance risks
as part of its Enterprise Risk Management Plan;
e) In close consultation with the ICT Committee, consider the adequacy of the Agency’s ICT
risk profile and in particular, key risks associated with the ICT Programme;
f)
Determine whether a sound and effective approach has been followed in establishing the
Agency  business  continuity  planning  arrangements,  including  whether  business
continuity and disaster recovery plans are periodically updated and tested; and
g) Assess whether management has taken steps to embed a culture which is committed to
ethical conduct and lawful behaviour.
Internal Control Environment
Internal Control Framework
a) Assess  whether  the  Agency  approach  to  maintaining  an  effective  internal  control
environment is sound and effective;
b) Assess  whether  the  Agency  has  in  place  comprehensive  and  relevant  policies  and
procedures designed to  maintain an effective internal control framework, such as policies,
procedures  and  delegations,  including  over  external  parties  such  as  contractors  and
advisers;
c) Determine  whether  the  Agency  has  appropriate  operating  and  monitoring  processes  in
place  to  assess,  whether  key  policies,  procedures,  laws  and  regulations  are  complied
with and that policies and procedures are kept up to date;
d) In  close  consultation  with  the  ICT  Committee,  consider  the  adequacy  of  the  Agency’s
information technology security arrangements; and
e) Assess  the  adequacy  of  Agency  compliance  with  relevant  legislative  and  legal
obligations, with particular reference to compulsory compliance declarations.
Internal Audit
a) Assess, update and approve the Internal Audit charter;
b) Assess  the  proposed  internal  audit  coverage,  ensure  the  coverage  is  aligned  to
Agency key risks, and assess the adequacy of internal audit resources to carry out its
responsibilities;
c) Assess  all  audit  reports  and  provide  advice  to  the  Board  on  significant  issues
identified  in  these  reports  and  recommend  action  on  issues  raised,  including
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identification and dissemination of good practice;

d)  Monitor  Agency  coordination  of  audit  programmes  conducted  by  internal  audit  and
other review functions;

e)  Where internal audit recommendations are accepted, monitor their implementation in
terms of timeliness and outcomes;

f)  Periodically assess the performance of internal audit programmes and providers; and
g)  Discuss  privately  with  the  internal  audit  service  provider  at  least  once  per  year  the
findings of the provider and its performance in carrying out its functions.
Engagement with the ANAO

The committee will engage directly with the ANAO, as the entity’s external auditor, in relation
to accounting policies and practices, the preparation and content of the financial statements
and the notes thereto and performance auditing.  In particular, the Committee will:

a)  Provide input and feedback on planned ANAO financial statement and performance audit
coverage  and  provide  feedback  to  ANAO  on  the  extent  and  standard  of  services
provided;

b)  Monitor Agency responses to all ANAO financial statement management letters, findings
and performance audit reports, including the timely and effective implementation of audit
recommendations; and

c)  Discuss  privately with the ANAO at least once per year the findings of the ANAO and its
performance in carrying out its functions

Reporting
The  Committee  will  update  the  Board  after  each  meeting  on  its  activities  and  make
recommendations to the Board, as appropriate.

The  Chair  of  the  Committee  will  report  to  the  Board  at  the  next  Board  meeting  following  a
meeting of the Committee on any matters that the Chair considers should be brought to the
attention of the Board.
The  Committee  will  at  least  annually  confirm  to  the  Board  that  all  functions/responsibilities
outlined  in  this  charter  have  been  carried  out,  and  comply  with  any  other  reporting
requirements specified by the Board from time to time.
The Committee  will provide guidance to the Board on the adequacy of Agency compliance
with  relevant  legislative  and  legal  obligations,  with  particular  reference  to  compulsory
compliance  declarations  (e.g.  the  Financial  Statements  and  the  Risk  Management
Declarations).

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5. Administrative Arrangements
Meetings
The  Committee  will  meet  at  least  4 times  per  year. One  or more  special  meetings may  be
held  to  review  Agency  annual  Financial  Statements  or  to  meet  other  responsibilities  of  the
Committee.
All Members are expected to attend each meeting, in person or via tele-or-video conference
on agreement with the Chair.
The  Chair  is  required  to  call  a  meeting  if  asked  to  do  so  by  the  Board,  and  decide  if  a
meeting is required if requested by any Committee Member, or by the internal auditor or the
ANAO.
Planning
The  Committee  will  develop  a  forward  meeting  schedule  that  includes  the  dates,  location,
and  proposed  agenda  items  for  each meeting  for  the forthcoming  year, and  that  covers  all
the responsibilities outlined in this charter, aligned to Board requirements
Quorum
A  quorum  will  consist  of  a  majority  of  Committee  Members.  The  quorum  must  be  in
attendance at all times during the meeting.
Secretariat
Secretariat arrangements will be the same as for the Board. The  Secretariat will ensure the
agenda  for  each  meeting  is  approved  by  the  Chair  in  advance,  that  the  agenda  and
supporting papers are circulated in advance of meetings where practicable to do so and at
least  5  working  days  before  a  meeting;  and  ensure  the  Minutes  of  each  meeting  are
prepared  and maintained.  Minutes  must  be reviewed  by  the  Chair  and  circulated  within  10
working days of each meeting to each Member and Observer, as appropriate.
Conflicts of interest
Members will provide written conflict of interest declarations annually to the Board declaring
any  material  personal  interests  they  may  have  in  relation  to  their  responsibilities.  External
members  should  consider  past  employment,  consultancy  arrangements  and  related  party
issues in making these declarations and the Board, in consultation with the Chair, should be
satisfied that there are sufficient processes in place to manage any real or perceived conflict.
At  the  beginning  of  each  meeting,  Members  are  required  to  declare  any  material  personal
interests that may apply to specific matters on the meeting agenda. Where required by the
Chair, the member will be excused from the meeting or from Committee consideration of the
relevant agenda item(s).
The  Chair  is  also  responsible  for  deciding  if  they  should  excuse  themselves  from  the
meeting or from Committee consideration of the relevant agenda item(s).
Details of material personal interests declared by the Chair and other Members, and actions
taken, will be appropriately recorded in the minutes.
Induction
New  Members  will receive relevant information and briefings on their appointment to assist
them to meet their Committee responsibilities.
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Performance Assessment Arrangements
The  Chair  will  initiate  a  self-assessment  of  the  performance  of  the  Committee  at  least
annually.  The review  will  involve  input  from the Board,  each  Member, senior  management,
internal  audit,  the  ANAO,  and  any  other  relevant  stakeholders  as  determined  by  the
Committee.
Review of Committee Charter
At least once a year the Committee will review this Charter for consultation with the Board.
Any changes to the Charter must be approved by the Board.
Approved
[Signature]
[Chair of the accountable authority] or Board
Date
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DOCUMENT 9

Bruce Bonyhady AM
Chairman
30 September 2014
Senator the Hon Mitch Fifield
Chair
COAG Disability Reform Council
Parliament House
CANBERRA  ACT  2600
Dear Minister
I am writing to you in your capacity as Chair of the Council of Australian Governments
Disability Reform Council (the Council), regarding the requirement for the National Disability
Insurance Agency (NDIA) Board to provide the Council with a signed risk management
declaration.
Attached is the Risk Management Declaration 2013-14, signed by the Chair of the NDIA
Board and the Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of the NDIA Board in accordance with
section 10 of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Risk Management Rules 2013 (‘the
Risk Management Rules’).
I would like to note in particular the qualification outlined in the declaration.  The Board does
not consider that these qualifications involve any contravention of the Board’s obligations
under the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 or the Risk Management Rules.
The Board has therefore agreed to the attached Risk Management Declaration.
Yours sincerely
National Disability Insurance Agency
T: (03) 5273 1486
GPO Box 700
E: xxxxx.xxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx
Canberra  ACT  2601
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