AUDITOR GENERAL ACT 2006 - SCHEDULE 1
AUDITOR GENERAL ACT 2006 - SCHEDULE 1
[s. 6(2), 11 and 49(2)]
1 . Appointment of Auditor General
(1) The Auditor
General is to be appointed by the Governor on the recommendation of the
Minister, and is to hold office as Auditor General in accordance with this
Schedule.
(2) Before
applications are sought for appointment to the office of Auditor General, the
Minister must consult with the Public Accounts Committee and the Estimates and
Financial Operations Committee as to the appropriate criteria for selection
for appointment.
(3) Before making a
recommendation under subclause (1), the Minister must consult with the
parliamentary leader of each political party with party status within
Parliament and with the Public Accounts Committee and the Estimates and
Financial Operations Committee.
(4) Subject to this
Act, a person appointed as Auditor General holds office for a term of 10
years.
(5) A person cannot be
appointed as Auditor General if the person has previously been appointed as
Auditor General under this Act or the Financial Administration and Audit Act
1985 .
(6) Before performing
the functions of Auditor General for the first time, the Auditor General must
make a declaration in the form in Schedule 2 before the Governor.
(1) In this clause
—
remuneration has the meaning given to that term in
the Salaries and Allowances Act 1975 section 4(1).
(2) The remuneration
of the Auditor General is to be determined by the Salaries and Allowances
Tribunal under the Salaries and Allowances Act 1975 .
(3) The rate of
remuneration of the Auditor General must not be reduced during the term of
office of the Auditor General without the Auditor General’s consent.
The Auditor General
must not, except so far as authorised so to do by another enactment or by
resolutions of both Houses of Parliament —
(a) hold
any office or place referred to in the Constitution Acts Amendment Act 1899
Schedule V Part 1 or 2 (other than the office of Auditor General) or be a
member of, or of the governing body of, any commission, council, board,
committee, authority, trust or other body referred to in Part 3 of that
Schedule; or
(b)
engage in any paid employment outside the duties of the office of Auditor
General.
4 . Leave and other conditions of service
(1) The Governor may
determine —
(a) the
leave of absence to which the Auditor General is entitled; and
(b)
other terms and conditions of service that apply to the Auditor General.
(2) Subject to any
determination under subclause (1), the Auditor General is entitled to leave of
absence and other conditions of service as applicable to public service
officers.
5 . Rights of officers preserved
(1) If a person who is
a public service officer is appointed as Auditor General, the person is
entitled to retain any accruing and existing rights, including any rights
under the Superannuation and Family Benefits Act 1938 , as if service as
Auditor General were a continuation of service as a public service officer.
(2) If a person ceases
to be Auditor General and becomes a public service officer, the service as
Auditor General is to be regarded as service in the Public Service for the
purposes of determining the person’s rights as a public service officer
and, if applicable, for the purposes of the
Superannuation and Family Benefits Act 1938 .
(3) If —
(a) a
person immediately before appointment as Auditor General occupied an office
under the Public Sector Management Act 1994 Part 3; and
(b) the
person’s term of office expires by effluxion of time,
the person is entitled
to be appointed to an office under the Public Sector Management Act 1994 Part
3 of at least the equivalent level of classification as the office that the
person occupied immediately before appointment as Auditor General.
6 . Resignation of Auditor General
The Auditor General
may resign from office by giving the Governor a signed letter of resignation.
7 . Removal and suspension from office
(1) The Auditor
General may, at any time, be removed or suspended from office by the Governor
on addresses from both Houses of Parliament.
(2) If the Auditor
General has been suspended from office under subclause (1), the suspension has
effect until the Auditor General is restored to or removed from office by the
Governor on addresses from both Houses of Parliament.
(3) Despite subclause
(1), the Governor may suspend the Auditor General from office if the Governor
is satisfied that the Auditor General —
(a) is
incapable of performing the functions of the Auditor General properly; or
(b) has
performed the functions of the Auditor General incompetently or has neglected
to perform those functions; or
(c) has
been guilty of misconduct; or
(d) has
contravened clause 3; or
(e) is
an insolvent under administration as defined in the Corporations Act
section 9.
(4) Either House of
Parliament may order the Joint Standing Committee on Audit to inquire into and
report on any motion for suspension or removal of the Auditor General.
(5) If the Auditor
General has been suspended from office under subclause (3), the Auditor
General is restored to office by operation of this subclause if —
(a) by
the end of the seventh sitting day of a House of Parliament following the day
of the suspension, a full statement of the grounds of the suspension has not
been laid before that House; or
(b) by
the end of the relevant day for a House of Parliament, that House has not
passed an address requesting the removal of the Auditor General from office.
(6) In subclause
(5)(b) —
relevant day for a House of Parliament means
—
(a) the
30th sitting day of that House following the day on which the statement
referred to in subclause (5)(a) is laid before it; or
(b) the
last day of the session during which the statement referred to in subclause
(5)(a) is laid before that House, if that session ends before the sitting day
referred to in paragraph (a).
(7) The
Interpretation Act 1984 section 52 does not apply to the office of Auditor
General.
(1) The Governor on
the recommendation of the Minister may appoint an appropriately qualified
person as an Acting Auditor General to act in the office of Auditor General
during a period when —
(a) that
office is vacant; or
(b) the
Auditor General is absent from duty, suspended from that office under clause 7
or unable to perform the functions of that office for any other reason.
(2) Before making a
recommendation under subclause (1), the Minister must consult with the
parliamentary leader of each political party with party status within
Parliament and with the Public Accounts Committee and the Estimates and
Financial Operations Committee.
(3) Before performing
the functions of Auditor General for the first time, an Acting Auditor General
must make a declaration in the form in Schedule 2 before the Governor.
(4) While an Acting
Auditor General is acting in the office of Auditor General —
(a) the
Acting Auditor General is to perform all the functions of the Auditor General
and any act or thing done by the Acting Auditor General in that performance
has the like effect as if it were done by the Auditor General; and
(b) any
act or thing that is required under a written law to be done to, by reference
to or in relation to the Auditor General is taken to be effectually done if
done to, by reference to or in relation to the Acting Auditor General; and
(c) the
Acting Auditor General has the same immunities and independence as the Auditor
General.
(5) Clauses 2 to 7
apply to an Acting Auditor General.
9 . Deputy Auditor General, or acting Deputy
Auditor General, may act as Auditor General
(1) In this clause
—
Deputy Auditor General means the person holding
the office referred to in section 10(1).
(2) Subject to
subclauses (3) and (4), the Deputy Auditor General is to act in the office of
Auditor General during any period when —
(a) that
office is vacant; or
(b) the
Auditor General is absent from duty, suspended from office under clause 7 or
unable to perform the functions of Auditor General for any other reason.
(3) Subject to
subclause (4), if during a period mentioned in subclause (2) —
(a) the
office referred to in section 10(1) is vacant; or
(b) the
Deputy Auditor General is absent from duty or unable to perform the functions
of Auditor General for any other reason,
the person who would
otherwise act in the office referred to in section 10(1) is to act in the
office of Auditor General.
(4) If an Acting
Auditor General has been appointed under clause 8 for a period mentioned in
subclause (2), subclauses (2) and (3) do not apply in respect of that period
unless the Acting Auditor General is absent from duty, suspended from office
under clause 7 or unable to perform the functions of Auditor General for any
other reason.
(5) While a person is
acting in the office of Auditor General under subclause (2) or (3) —
(a) the
person is to perform all the functions of the Auditor General and any act or
thing done by the person in that performance has the like effect as if it were
done by the Auditor General; and
(b) any
act or thing that is required under a written law to be done to, by reference
to or in relation to the Auditor General is taken to be effectually done if
done to, by reference to or in relation to the person; and
(c) the
person has the same immunities and independence as the Auditor General.
(6) Anything done by
or in relation to a person purporting to act in the office of Auditor General
under subclause (2) or (3) is not invalid merely because the occasion to act
had not arisen or had ceased.
(7) Before performing
the functions of the Auditor General for the first time under subclause
(5)(a), a person must make a declaration in the form in Schedule 2 before the
Governor.