The Auditor-General’s mid-term review was presented to the House of Representatives today.

Earlier this year, I reached the mid-point of my seven-year term as Auditor-General. I commissioned a review to reflect on where we are as an Office, identify the challenges the Office faces, and confirm the key priorities for the rest of my term. This will also help to prepare the Office for the next Auditor-General in 2025.

The Office has built a strong reputation over many years. The review found that we have made good progress on the strategy developed in 2017/18. We have broadened the focus and approach of our work to increase our impact, expanded and updated our good practice material, increased the use of data and analytics, and provided more reporting from the Controller function. We have sharpened our focus on influencing improvements in public accountability and we continue to build our capability to enhance our relationships with Māori. This work was supported by increased investment from Parliament that has allowed us to invest more in our people and systems to position us well for the future.

The most significant challenge we currently face is delivering the Office’s mandatory audit work. The Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated many of the challenges already facing the audit profession and created new ones. This meant that it was not possible to complete all audits within statutory timeframes. While good progress is being made in clearing deferred audits, this is an ongoing area of focus. Ensuring the sustainability of public sector audits will be a priority for the remainder of my term. I will also continue to focus on increasing the impact of our work, strengthening our relationships with Māori, and building our influence as a trusted and independent source of information for Parliament and the public.

John Ryan
Controller and Auditor-General

This review is also available as a two-page summary.

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