Public Accounts and Audit committee commences inquiry into Attorney-General’s Department’s procurement of services in response to 2017 Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse.

Media release issue date: Wednesday, 10 September 2025

The Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit has commenced an inquiry into the Attorney-General’s Department’s procurement of services in response to the 2017 Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse. The Chair of the Committee, Mr Josh Burns MP, stated that ‘effective tendering and procurement processes are fundamental to how the Australian Government delivers vital services such as these. Eight years on from this Royal Commission, however, they are still not in place.’ The Committee will consider the findings of Auditor-General Report No. 44 (2024-25), alongside the following terms of reference: The tender and procurement processes being utilised by the Attorney-General’s department to seek providers of the required services The lessons learned by the department in relation to these procurements and their current status. Submissions to the inquiry addressing the above terms of reference are invited by Friday 17 October 2025. Details of this inquiry—including the submissions received and public hearings—will be available on the inquiry website. For background information Committee Secretariat jcpaa@aph.gov.au For more information about this inquiry, you can visit its website. On the site, you can make a submission to an inquiry, read other submissions, and get details for upcoming public hearings. You can also track the Committee and receive email updates by clicking on the blue ‘Track Committee’ button in the bottom right-hand corner of the page.