THE Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit (JCPAA) has requested that an independent post-election review of the operations of the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) be undertaken and that this should be conducted externally.
Committee Chair Josh Burns MP said, "One of the JCPAA’s legislative responsibilities is to consider whether the operations of the PBO should be reviewed following a Federal Election, and to determine the scope and nature of that review. The committee agrees that an external review of the PBO’s effectiveness would be timely."
The committee has directed that Martin Parkinson AC PSM be engaged to conduct this work. The terms of reference include the effectiveness and efficiency of the PBO, the appropriateness of its mandate, resourcing and service demand levels, stakeholder feedback, and the impact of PBO’s outputs in public policy debates.
Mr Burns further said, "The PBO performs vital costings and budgetary analysis, among other services, to Parliamentarians and thereby the Australian public. The committee wishes to ensure that the PBO can continue to effectively fulfil this important mandate into the future."
AIRSERVICES AUSTRALIA will appear before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works (the committee) for a public hearing in Rockhampton, Queensland, on Thursday, September 18, 2025.
The PFAS referral proposes remedial actions for the management of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) contamination resulting from historical firefighting operations on the site of the Former Firefighting Training Ground (FFTG) at Rockhampton Airport. The total estimated cost of the proposed works is $24.975 million.
The proposed NexGen Project works will include the rebuilding of three end of life facilities (Cairns, Rockhampton, Mackay), minor works across three sites (Gladstone, Sunshine Coast, and Melbourne Learning Academy), the replacement of Ultra Large Fire Vehicles, and works for cold drill grounds to support training objectives and meet CASA regulations and meet ongoing workforce capability training needs. The total estimated cost of the proposed works is $163.4 million.
Tony Zappia MP, Chair of the Committee, said, ‘The committee is looking forward to conducting its first site inspections and away hearings of this Parliament."
Mr Zappia also said, "It is vital for the committee to get out of Canberra and see how Commonwealth funding is being spent on the ground and we’re eager to see the proposed work sites at Rockhampton Airport."
The committee will hear from relevant officers from Airservices Australia and local land holder, Chris Stasch, at the hearing. Interested members of the public are encouraged to listen in to the public hearing via the APH website or attend the hearing in person at the location listed below.
DEMENTIA is now the leading cause of death for Australians, according to the latest update of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s (AIHW) Dementia in Australia report.
The update, which was released today, also found that without a significant intervention, the number of Australians living with dementia will exceed 1 million by 2065.
Dementia Australia CEO Tanya Buchanan said the report, released in the lead-up to Dementia Action Week (September 15-21), reveals the enormous impact dementia has on Australian families.
“These figures highlight just how many families are impacted by dementia across Australia. Most of us know someone who is or has been impacted by dementia,” Professor Buchanan said.
“People affected by dementia often tell us that friends and family drift away after a diagnosis, because they are unsure of how to interact.
“That’s why the theme for this year’s Dementia Action Week – which starts on Monday 15 September – is ‘Nobody can do it alone’.We are challenging Australians to reconnect with someone impacted by dementia to help combat the high levels of social isolation many experience.”
Dementia Australia dementia advocate Lil Mirtl, who lives with dementia, said the report highlighted how important it was to act now to provide the support and services for people living with dementia.
“We don’t have time to feel uncomfortable or awkward about these conversations about dementia – we need to have them now," Ms Mirtl said.
“We have to pull together as a community to do this. We can’t do it alone as individuals, the government can’t do it alone, we need to all act together.”
The update to the Dementia in Australia report also revealed that 43 percent of the dementia burden in Australia can be attributed to six modifiable risk factors: being overweight or obese, physical inactivity, high blood sugar, high blood pressure in midlife, smoking and impaired kidney function.
"With dementia now the leading cause of death for Australians it is more pressing than ever that the Federal Government commit to funding a national conversation on dementia to raise awareness and promote brain health at all ages,” Prof. Buchanan said.
“By taking a comprehensive approach to addressing dementia, we can reduce the impact of dementia into the future. With aged care across the country already under pressure, and the number of people living with dementia expected to exceed 1 million by 2065, we simply cannot afford to wait.
"We call on the government to take decisive action. People living with dementia, their families and carers are depending on us to do this right, and to do it now.”
Visit dementia.org.au/dementiaactionweek to access a range of resources and information to support Australians to reconnect with someone impacted by dementia.
THE Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has commenced an inquiry into the Attorney-General’s Department’s procurement of services in response to the 2017 Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse.
Chair of the Committee, Josh Burns MP, said, "Effective tendering and procurement processes are fundamental to how the Australian Government delivers vital services such as these. Eight years on from this Royal Commission, however, they are still not in place."
The committee is seeking to identify opportunities to promote and support sustainable markets for rural and regional small and medium businesses in all sectors, through enhanced branding, and certification of Australian grown or produced goods and services.
The inquiry will also examine strategies to improve Australia’s marketing efforts to promote its ‘clean and green’ agricultural, food and drink outputs; and how these align with tourism in rural and regional Australia.
Committee Chair, Senator Marielle Smith said, "The committee is keen to explore the opportunities — both traditional and innovative — that our rural and regional producers and operators are embracing; and how small and medium businesses can be better supported to not only stay in existing markets, but importantly to expand them.
"We would like to hear views from a wide variety of stakeholders about what would make a real difference in sustaining economic growth in rural and regional Australia, including through improving domestic and international branding, and certification of products and services," Senator Smith said.
"Our regional and rural outputs are diverse and are the foundation of safe and top quality goods for domestic consumption and for highly-regarded and identifiable products demanded in overseas markets."
The committee is inviting interested individuals and organisations to make submissions by Friday, October 17, 2025.
Further information about the committee’s inquiry, including the terms of reference and how to contribute, are available on the Committee’s website.
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