Auditor-General's report, Border security: Using information to process passengers

The Auditor-General’s report Border security: Using information to process passengers was presented to the House of Representatives today.

This report looks at whether staff working on the frontline at major ports have the information they need to effectively and efficiently process incoming passengers and their accompanied goods. Frontline staff include officers from the New Zealand Customs Service and the Ministry for Primary Industries. We also looked at how frontline staff use information from Immigration New Zealand.

In our view, the border agencies are operating effectively. There are differences in the quality of some of the information the agencies receive – for example, the information they receive from airlines and from cruise lines. This affects how efficiently the information is used. Agencies are working with cruise lines to further improve the availability and quality of pre-arrival passenger information.

We also looked at whether frontline staff have the systems, tools, and resources to best use and share information, and whether there is effective collaboration between the agencies. Improvements should be made in both areas to ensure that information is used in the most efficient way.

New Zealand Customs and the Ministry for Primary Industries also need to continue to develop their approach to workforce planning to improve their ability to efficiently deploy staff.

At a strategic level, the Border Sector Governance Group has improved collaboration between agencies in recent years. We have recommended that they strengthen the vision and strategy so the border sector can work more collaboratively, and that the long-term strategy is effectively communicated to all staff.

A one-page summary of this report is also available.

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