March 14 2002 MEDIA RELEASE

NSWALC RESPONSE TO A-G's REPORT

The New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council said today it has already taken decisive steps to rectify concerns raised in the Auditor General's Report to Parliament.

"In the past six months, we have begun to address financial issues through a number of significant organisational and structural changes and through amendments to the NSW Aboriginal Land Rights Act, " Chairman Rod Towney said today.

Mr Towney said that the appointment of Mr Jeff Bradford to the newly established position of Chief Executive Officer and the structures put in place by Mr Bradford, have been highly instrumental in tackling issues raised.

"Since June 2001, a Review of Staffing and Structure has been commissioned and completed and is now being implemented.

"A Baseline Financial Review has been completed by an independent financial management group, Ferrier Hodgson, looking into the financial operations of the organisation. A new Manager of Financial Operations has also been appointed and is now in the process of implementing the Review's recommendations.

"In addition to the Ferrier Hodgson review, over the past 18 months the Land Council has worked with the Department of Aboriginal Affairs and Price Waterhouse Coopers to develop a uniform system of accounting across the Land Council network. This project has resulted in the development of budget templates for all Aboriginal Land Councils, and the creation of a checklist by which Aboriginal Land Council audits will be assessed.

"The Auditor General's concerns over the Council's Mortgage Lending Fund are also being addressed, with Council currently pursuing legal avenues to recoup losses," Chairman Towney said.

"An Electronic Payroll Management System (Fingerscan) has been installed on a trial basis in Council's Head Office at Parramatta with the intention of extending it to the Council's eleven Branch Offices throughout NSW. When this system is fully installed, it will relay time and attendance information directly to the Council's payroll system in Parramatta.

"Furthermore, a review of Council's rural properties has been finalised and the report of the findings is also being implemented.

"In regards to managing expenses, Council has put in place a raft of new policies to regulate the use of Council assets. (see amendments to Act below).

"In addition to these changes within the organisation, the recent amendments to the NSW Aboriginal Land Rights Act (1983) will also be significant in addressing the financial difficulties that the Land Council system has faced in previous years

The amendments to the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983 include:

· Change to the financial year to bring it into line with the financial sector (from 1 October - 30 September, to 1 July - 30 June).

· Preservation of the amount of the statutory fund as at 31 December 1998.

· Improved capacity by the NSW Aboriginal Land Council to control the funding made available to Local and Regional Aboriginal Land Councils through the use of contractual agreements.

· Disclosure in the annual report of the NSW Aboriginal Land Council of information relating to the remuneration of councillors (including travel expenses) and the funding provided to Local Aboriginal Land Councils.

· Creation of the position of Chief Executive Office to manage the day to day running of the NSW Aboriginal Land Council and its staff. (This will ensure that there is a division between the operations of the land council and the work of councillors.)

· Disclosure by NSWALC councillors of any financial interests they may have in a particular matter under consideration by the Council.

"The changes and actions outlined are but some of the restructure process that Council is currently undertaking. I firmly believe that as a result of the changes being introduced and the attention being paid to the strengthening of the internal control measures and adherence to the organisation's statutory obligations, future reports to Parliament will be of a totally different nature."

"In summary, I can say the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council is doing all it can to address each and every one of the issues raised by the Auditor General and welcomes the constructive criticism in his report," Chairman Towney concluded.