Attachment 1: Terms of Reference

The review will assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the Office, in particular how well the Office is achieving the outcomes it seeks.

The review will cover:

• the governance of the Office, including the respective roles of and relationship between the Office of the Auditor-General and Audit New Zealand;
• the conduct of financial audit engagements, including the audit of Long-term Council Community Plans;
• the conduct of performance audits, inquiries, the Controller function, and other work performed by the Office of the Auditor-General, including the support of select committees;
• general management of the Office, including the organisation of resources, the allocation of audits, and setting and monitoring of audit fees;
• the operation of the Office’s quality control systems;
• the Office’s relationships with its primary stakeholders, in particular Parliament; and
• such other matters as the review team considers relevant.

The review will generally follow the approach developed for the Australasian Council of Auditors-General for Peer Reviews and Voluntary Developmental Quality Assurance Reviews.

Timing and reporting

The review will take place in September 2007. The reviewers intend completing their report by 31 March 2008.