IGIS Annual Report 1988-89

IGIS Annual Report 1988-89

30 August 1989

The Hon. R.J.L. Hawke, AC, MP
Prize Minister
Parliament House
CANBERRA ACT 2600

  

My dear Prime Minister

 

I have pleasure in submitting to you the third Annual Report on my operations, as required by section 35 of the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Act 1986, in a form suitable for tabling in Parliament.

 

Yours sincerely

 

N.D. McInnes

Inspector-General of
Intelligence and Security

 

 

 

 

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ROLE

The Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security assists the responsible ministers in the oversight and review of Australials intelligence and security agencies to ensure the agencies, compliance with the law and the propriety of their activities; to ensure the effectiveness and appropriateness of the agencies' procedures in relation to the legality or propriety of their activities; to ensure that the activities of the agencies are consistent with human rights; and to allow for review of certain directions given to ASIO by the Attorney-General.

COMPLAINTS AND INOUIRIES

I received eight requests from members of the public for assistance in dealing with the intelligence agencies and, in addition, fourteen specific complaints, all of which concerned ASIO. After investigating eleven of these complaints, I decided that none of them required further action and so advised the complainants. The other three led to full-scale inquiries, two of which were still proceeding at the end of the reporting period.

During the year I dealt with seven complaints from members or former members of ASIO. Complaints from within the Organisation lodged in previous years had led me to believe that its staff grievance procedures were not working satisfactorily, so in the course of the reporting period I conducted an investigation under s. 8(1)(b) of the legislation, which empowers me "to inquire into the procedures of ASIO relating to redress of grievances of employees of ASIO". The recommendations I made at the conclusion of thnt inquiry are now being implemented by the Organisation, with the assistance of the Attorney-Generalls Department. Moreover, the Organisation has already put into effect changes I recommended, after an earlier inquiry into a staff complaint, in its procedures for staff access to personal files and for the staff performance and development review program. The net result of these improvements of ASIO's personnel practices, put into effect by the present Director-General of Security, will, I believe, facilitate the work of ASIO staff and management in what is often a difficult and always a delicate task.

STAFF COUNSELLING

The frequency of approaches to me by members of ASIO (and to a much lesser extent members and former members of ASIS) underlines the importance of the function of staff counselling by this Office. Members of intelligence agencies sometimes ,cave problems with their work which they cannot resolve within their agency and which they might therefore be tempted to take up with unauthorised persons, with consequent damage to national security. Recourse to the Inspector-General is provided in order to deal with this dilemma. I reported last year that such recourse was hampered by an interpretation of a section of the ASIO Act that enjoins secrecy on its members. That difficulty has been dealt with by a memorandum of understanding between the present Director-General of Security and myself, which guarantees unfettered access to re for ASIO staff and which allows me to obtain documents relevant to staff complaints without launching a full-scale inquiry in each case. I believe that this agreement needs to find, eventually, a legislative basis in an amendment of the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Act.

MONITORING OF COLLECTION AGENCIES

I continued periodic inspections at DSD and ASIS of their handling of material relating to Australians. I am satisfied that there is machinery in place to protect the privacy of Australian citizens and permanent residents from unwarranted intrusion, be it deliberate or accidental, by those two intelligence collection services. It will continue to be monitored. I have proposed to the Attorney-General a comparable monitoring system for ASIO's more intrusive operations.

OFFICE ADMINISTRATION

 

In performing my statutory functions as Inspector-General, I am assisted by three staff members.

Section 22C of the Public Service Act requires me to report on the implementation and operation of industrial democracy plans in my Office. During the year the Department of Industrial Relations gave its endorsement to the Office's Industrial Democracy Plan, the terms of which have been implemented in 1988-89. As to EEO for my staff, the arrangement whereby the EEO Program of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet also covers my Office has proved to be effective.

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STATEMENT BY THE INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF INTELLIGENCE

AND SECURITY 

AND 

PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE OFFICER

 

CERTIFICATION

 

We certify that the financial statements are in agreement with the office's accounts and records and, in our opinion, the statements have been prepared in accordance with the Financial Statements Guidelines for Departmental Secretaries.

 

 

 

 

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AGGREGATE STATEMENT OF TRANSACTIONS BY FUND

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 1989

This statement shows aggregate cash transactions, for which the Office is responsible, for each of the three Funds comprising the Commonwealth Public Account (CPA). The Office does not operate on the Loan Fund or the Trust Fund.

 

 

1987-88 Actual $		1988-89 Budget $	1988-89 Actual $
	CONSOLIDATED REVENUE FUND
NIL	Receipts	NIL	NIL
264,019	Expenditure from Annual Appropriations	289,000	293,000
NIL	LOAN FUND
NIL	TRUST FUND

 

 

DETAILED STATEMENT OF TRANSACTIONS BY FUND

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 1989

CONSOLIDATED REVENUE FUND

 

The CRF is the main working fund of the Commonwealth and consists of all current moneys received by the Commonwealth (excluding loan raisings and moneys received by the Trust Fund). The Office does not have receipt items. The Constitution requires that an appropriation of moneys by the Parliament is required before any expenditure can be made from the CRF. Appropriations follow two forms: 

 

The Office is responsible for the following expenditure items.

 

1987-88 Actual $		Notes	1988-89 Approp.	1988-89 Expend.
	SPECIAL APPROPRIATIONS
99,806	Remuneration Tribunals Act Holders of Public Office Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security	3	NIL	NIL
	ANNUAL APPROPRIATIONS
164,213	Appropriation Act No 1		289,000)
			)	293,000
	Appropriation Act No 3		4,000)
264,019	Total Expenditure from Annual Appropriations		293,000	293,000
264,019	TOTAL EXPENDITURE FROM CRF			293,000

 

 

 

DETAILED PROGRAM SUMMARY

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 1989

This Statement shows the outlays for the sub-program administered by the Office and reconciles the Office's total outlays to total expenditure from appropriations.

'Expenditure' refers to the actual amount of resources used by the sub-program. 

This Statement has not been subject to audit.

 

1987-88 Actual $'000		1988-89 Budget $'000	1988-89 Actual $'000
	EXPENDITURE
	Outlays
	3. Public Administration and Accountability
264	3.4 Office of the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security	293	293
264	Total Outlays
264	TOTAL EXPENDITURE FROM APPROPRIATIONS	293	293

 

 

 

 

STATEMENT OF SUPPLEMENTARY FINANCIAL INFORMATION

AS AT 30 JUNE 1989

 

This Statement has not been subject to audit.

 

			As at 30 June 1989 $'000
NON-CURRENT ASSETS Computer and office equipment			41

 

 

 

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 1989

NOTE 1

STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

 

(a) The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the 'Financial Statements Guidelines for Departmental Secretaries' issued by the Minister for Finance.

(b) The financial statements have been prepared on a cash basis with the exception of the Statement of Supplementary Financial Information which includes certain accrual-type information.

(ii) The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the historical cost convention and do not take account of changing money values or, except where stated, current values of non-current assets.

(c) Amounts shown in the Aggregate Statement of Transactions by Fund and the Detailed Statement of Transactions by Fund have been rounded to the nearest $1; other amounts have been rounded to the nearest $1000.

(d) Minor assets having a unit cost less than $1,060 have not been accounted for in the Statement of Supplementary Information.

(e) Salaries, wages and related benefits payable to officers and employees of the Office have not been accounted for in the balance of creditors in the Statement of Supplementary Financial Information.

 

 

NOTE 2

RESOURCES RECEIVED FREE OF CHARGE

During 1988-89 financial year, a number of Commonwealth Departments and agencies provided standard services to the Office without charge. They were the Department of Administrative Services, the Australian Audit office, the Attorney-Generalls Department and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Expenditures for these services were met from those Departments' appropriations.

 

NOTE 3

Payments to Holders of Public Office were paid formerly by Special Appropriation. These payments now form part of running costs.

 

 

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AUSTRALIAN AUDIT OFFICE

 

 

Please quote F89/515

 

OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR-GENERAL OF INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY AUDIT REPORT ON FINANCIAL STATEMENT

In accordance with subsection 50(1) of the Audit Act 1901, the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security has submitted for my report the financial statement of the Office of the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security for the year ended 30 June 1989.

Subsection 50(2) of the Act provides that the financial statement shall be prepared in accordance with the financial statement guidelines laid down and shall set out:

(a) particulars of the receipts and expenditures of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, the Loan Fund and the Trust Fund during the financial year in respect of the Department; and

(b) such other information (if any) relating to the financial year as is required by the financial statements guidelines to be included in the statement.

 The part of the financial statement prepared in accordance with paragraph 50(2)(b) of the Act is not subject to audit examination and report unless the Minister for Finance has declared that it is to be subject to full examination. At the date of this report the Minister had not made a declaration in respect of the Office of the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security.

The part of the financial statement prepared in accordance with paragraph 50(2)(a) of the Act which is subject to audit has been prepared in accordance with the policies outlined in Note 1 and has been audited in conformance with the Australian Audit Office Auditing Standards.

In accordance with subsection 51(1) of the Act, I now report that the part of the statement prepared in accordance with subsection 50(2)(a) is, in my opinion:

in agreement with the accounts and records kept in accordance with section 40 of the Act; and

in accordance with the financial statements guidelines made by the Minister for Finance.

 

Australian Audit Office

 

D.S. Lennie
Acting Senior Assistant Auditor-General
29 August 1989