The councillor requested QAO audit 2 matters. They are:
- the accuracy of Townsville City Council’s (council) public information about COVID-19 support package
- Townsville City Council’s administration of the Development Incentives Package 2019 – 2021.
We responded to the councillor on 2 December 2021 advising that we are not planning to audit the accuracy of the information it published, or statements it made about the COVID-19 support package. This is because the Queensland Audit Office’s mandate (Auditor-General Act 2009) does not extend to auditing council budgets and/or budget-related announcements.
In relation to the councillor’s request that we audit the Development Incentives Package 2019 – 2021, we will obtain more information about the council’s administration of this grant package as part of our annual financial audit process.
If we identify any deficiencies in the council’s administration of the grant, we will report these in a letter to management. If we identify any significant issues, we will also include these in a report to parliament.
Status
Completed – we reviewed council’s administration of the grant package. We identified opportunities for council to improve its administration of grant packages, which we have communicated to the council. We did not identify any matters of significance to include in a report to parliament.