17Performance audits of Commonwealth entities, Commonwealth companies and subsidiaries

17 Performance audits of Commonwealth entities, Commonwealth companies and subsidiaries

(1) The Auditor‑General may at any time conduct a performance audit of: (a) a Commonwealth entity; or (b) a Commonwealth company; or (c) a subsidiary of a corporate Commonwealth entity or a Commonwealth company. (2) However, the Auditor‑General may only conduct such an audit on request by the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit if the audit is of: (a) a corporate Commonwealth entity that is a GBE, or of any of its subsidiaries; or (b) a wholly‑owned Commonwealth company that is a GBE, or any of its subsidiaries. (3) Nothing prevents the Auditor‑General from asking the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit to make a particular request under subsection (2). (4) As soon as practicable after completing the report on an audit under this section, the Auditor‑General must: (a) cause a copy of the report to be tabled in each House of the Parliament; and (b) give a copy of the report to the responsible Minister; and (c) give a copy of the report: (i) if the audit is of a Commonwealth entity—to an official who is, or is a member of, the accountable authority of the entity; or (ii) if the audit is of a Commonwealth company—to a director of the company; or (iii) if the audit is of a subsidiary of a corporate Commonwealth entity or Commonwealth company—to a person who is, or is a member of, the governing body of the subsidiary; and (d) to the extent that the report relates to the operations of a Commonwealth partner—give a copy of the report to a person who is, or is a member of, the governing body of the Commonwealth partner. (5) The Auditor‑General may give a copy of, or an extract from, the report to any person (including a Minister) who, or any body that, in the Auditor‑General’s opinion, has a special interest in the report or the content of the extract. (6) For the purposes of this section, a Commonwealth entity is taken not to include any persons who are: (a) employed under the Members of Parliament (Staff) Act 1984; and (b) prescribed by an Act or rules made for the purposes of the definition of Department of State or Parliamentary Department in section 8 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 in relation to the entity.