This issue of the NSW ICAC’s Corruption Matters newsletter reaches you at a time when we have all experienced an extraordinary period of unrest, uncertainty, and for some, loss. As a pre-caution against COVD-19, the ICAC closed its offices in late March, and most of our staff have been working remotely since then. At the time of writing, we are still in that position, and monitoring the situation as to when we may begin to return to our premises.
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A report released by the ICAC in April summarises the areas where agencies could face higher levels of corruption risk during the pandemic and the associated economic downturn. In broad terms, the pandemic and associated working from home arrangements could push agencies out of their business-as-usual control environments. Combined with financial pressures arising from a likely recession, this could lead to more corruption.
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On 26 May 2020, the ICAC furnished its report on its Investigation into the over-payment of public funds by the University of Sydney for security services (Operation Gerda) to the Presiding Officers of the NSW Parliament.
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Sloppy due diligence practices can become an attractive loophole for rogue employees and suppliers. It’s as easy as adding a favoured supplier into an agency’s system and doling out the purchase orders for bogus work. The ICAC has investigated and exposed numerous instances of corruption that could have been prevented if agencies had heeded the warning signs at the get-go.
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Between the bushfires and COVID-19 restrictions, this year has felt as though we’ve lurched from one crisis to the next. For many of us who work in the public sector, the decisions we make during a crisis have the ability to make a positive impact on our community when they need us the most.
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Dr Tony Bertoia is a principal policy officer at the NSW Data Analytics Centre (DAC), the first whole-of-government data analytics centre in a state government in Australia. Most recently, the DAC has played a central role in ensuring key decision-makers across government have access to timely, insightful and actionable data during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The ICAC works to expose, investigate and prevent public sector corruption in NSW. To help us achieve this mission, we have launched a YouTube channel to host future videos on a range of topics that we expect to be of interest to various audiences.
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Although the biennial National Investigations Symposium has been postponed for next year, the ICAC has stepped up its offering of free online workshops. Standards Australia is inviting comments on its planned revision of the Australian Standard on fraud and corruption control.
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