ANAO unveils 2024–25 annual report

The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) Annual Report 2024–25, authored by the auditor general, revealed that throughout the year, the office issued 243 unmodified opinions and one modified opinion in the 2023–24 financial statement audits.

The 2024–25 year, ending on 30 June 2025, also saw the appointment of the current auditor general, Dr Caralee McLiesh, who said the office had faced several transitions during the year, including the election of the 28th parliament and new appointments to several leadership roles.

“Our work continued to be shaped by broader trends in the Australian public sector — from a focus on integrity and the delivery of government priorities, to the rapid emergence of new technologies, fiscal pressures, and policies to address climate change,” the auditor general said.

“Global developments during the year, including heightened economic uncertainty, shifts in the geopolitical landscape and increased cyber and national security threats, affected risk and activity in the public sector and, therefore, the ANAO in its work as the government’s auditor.”

The report revealed a total of 214 audit findings were reported to entities (2022-23:196), which comprised six significant, 46 moderate, 147 minor audit findings, as well as 15 legislative breaches.

Weakness in IT controls continued to be the most prevalent finding which included deficiencies in IT security, change management and user access controls.

This was then closely followed by findings related to compliance and quality assurance frameworks, including legal conformance, then accounting and control of non-financial assets.

The auditor general said the results from the 2023–24 performance statements were mixed, with nine out of 14 auditees having received an unmodified audit opinion and five having received a modified audit opinion.

“Since the start of the performance statements audits four years ago, the ANAO has observed stronger compliance with legal requirements and greater reliability of measures,” she said.

“In entities with repeat audits, we saw fewer findings and growing measures of maturity in performance management systems, including improved governance and established and empowered central performance teams.”

From this, it was noted there remained to be substantial opportunity for improvement in performance statements, including the need for more meaningful reporting, measurement of efficiency and productivity, as well as reporting on cross-entity measures.

From the 44 performance audits that were published over the year, a consistent theme identified was the need for the public sector to maintain its focus on integrity, including ‘getting the basics right’ by adhering to applicable policies, frameworks and laws.

Other common themes identified included opportunities for greater stewardship, by keeping governance and frameworks fit-for-purpose, as well as strengthening risk management, performance monitoring and management.

In addition to this, the auditor general noted more than 96 per cent of ANAO recommendations were agreed to by audited entities and more than 80 per cent of recommendations had been implemented within 24 months of the report being presented.

Effective audit services strengthen the integrity of government institutions and are an important part of Australia’s Westminster system of democracy, the auditor general said.

“They build trust and confidence in the government sector, which is essential to addressing the challenges and opportunities Australia faces.”

“Underpinning all our audit work is an enduring focus on quality, which is critical in supporting the integrity of our audit reports and maintaining the confidence of the Parliament, government entities and the public.”