Departmental outputs Cost
Ratio of departmental expense to administered expense
For every dollar spend on administered items under Output Group 3.1 in 2002–03, 5.1 cents were spent on departmental outputs.
Policy advice Quality—Client satisfaction
Ministers and Ministers’ offices are satisfied with the quality of policy advice and FaCS meets standards for policy advice
Ministers and their offices did not provide feedback on individual output groups but did provide feedback on departmental performance as a whole. Information on ministers’ and their offices’ assessment can be found in Part two—Ministerial and parliamentary services.
Technical quality of policy advice for Outcome 3—Satisfactory.
Quantity
Number of items to Ministers
225 ministerial submissions and other written briefings or advice prepared; 670 ministerial replies to correspondence completed.
Price
$14.8 million
Purchasing, funding and relationship management Quality—Assurance
FaCS ensures that service providers meet terms and conditions of funding
Service agreements/contracts meet legislative, government policy and FaCS requirements are in place with all service providers
The Business Partnership Agreement with Centrelink sets out key result areas and performance measures that apply to payments and services for Output Group 3.1. Centrelink monitors performance against agreed standards for the delivery of services and provides quarterly performance reports to FaCS.
Quantity
Number of contracts/service agreements under management
Under the current Business Partnership Agreement with Centrelink, Output 3.1 has one output specification, which encompasses four attachments.
Number of service providers under management
145 service providers delivering PSP.
Price
$7.9 million
Quality—Assurance
Research and evaluation is of a high standard (timely, fulfils terms of reference, complete, methodologically sound) and contributes to policy understanding and development
Research and evaluation during 2002–03 met the timelines and terms of reference, and used sound methodology. All research and evaluation was of a consistently high standard.
Quantity
Major pieces of research and evaluation completed—3
Price
$ 3.7 million
Quality—Assurance
Service providers deliver services to the standards agreed with FaCS
FaCS and Centrelink conducted random sample surveys on Newstart Allowance, Parenting Payment Partnered, Parenting Payment Single and Special Benefit in 2002–03 to determine the levels of the accuracy of outlays, incorrect payment and incorrect decisions.
Centrelink conducted validation of these samples. FaCS will examine the critical assumptions used in the analysis of data and expects to report the findings in late 2003. Joint action groups will then examine these results in relation to program risk assessments and the Business Assurance Framework. Future years’ samples will be verified through an independent quality assurance by FaCS.
Number of reviews and appeals
Table 49: Reviews and appeals—Output Group 3.1
Payment type
|
Authorised
Review Officers
|
Social Security Appeals Tribunal
|
Administrative Appeals Tribunal
|
Reviews finalised
|
Percentage changed
|
Reviews finalised
|
Percentage changed
|
Reviews finalised
|
Percentage changed
|
Newstart Allowance
|
6 978
|
32
|
1 219
|
29
|
206
|
20
|
Mature Age Allowance
|
119
|
29
|
45
|
24
|
9
|
11
|
Partner Allowance
|
337
|
35
|
110
|
41
|
24
|
29
|
Widow Allowance
|
130
|
34
|
29
|
31
|
8
|
13
|
Special Benefit
|
383
|
32
|
117
|
39
|
25
|
24
|
Bereavement Allowance
|
21
|
24
|
5
|
20
|
0
|
0
|
Parenting Payment (Single)
|
2 377
|
40
|
429
|
37
|
77
|
29
|
Parenting Payment (Partnered)
|
1 849
|
37
|
427
|
39
|
62
|
31
|
Pensioner Education Supplement
|
254
|
26
|
43
|
21
|
5
|
0
|
Control of incorrect payment and fraud: savings in administered items arising from compliance activities
Mechanisms common across most payment types for detection and control of incorrect payment and fraud are described in the section on Right payments to the right people.
In 2002–03, an interrogation of the Centrelink mainframe data indicated that 2 507 237 Newstart Allowance, Partner Allowance, Parenting Payment (Single), Parenting Payment (Partnered), Widow Allowance, Mature Age Allowance and Special Benefit reviews were completed. It is estimated that some 536 836 rate reductions resulted in fortnightly savings of $74 895 182 and 440 580 upward variations resulted in fortnightly increases of $36 248 909. Some 238 104 debts totalled $191 317 088. Service profiling was introduced gradually during 2002–03. The above figures represent a total of program reviews and service profiling updates for the financial year
Performance outcomes for debt recovery and prosecution activity are reported in the section on Right payments to the right people.
Significant increases in the number of reviews reported over previous years’ results reflect a widening of the definition of what constitutes a review rather than an increase in underlying review activity.
Price
$609.4 million—Centrelink
$4.1 million—Other
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