Purchasing/contracting reports

Managing funding to non-government organisations – from principles to practice

June 2008: We looked at how an entity put the principles and risk-based approach we expect into practice in its funding arrangements with NGOs...

Procurement guidance for public entities

June 2008: This guide outlines our view of the good practice that public entities should use to procure goods or services...

Public sector purchases, grants, and gifts: Managing funding arrangements with external parties

June 2008: The aim of this guide is to help public entities make informed decisions and manage risks when funding an external party...

Queenstown Lakes District Council - regulatory and resource management services

September 2007: Letter advising of the outcome of our inquiry into decisions made by the Queenstown Lakes District Council and the council-controlled organisation that it established to provide regulatory and resource management services for the district...

Achieving public sector outcomes with private sector partners

February 2006: This report draws on the experience of overseas jurisdictions, and provides examples of partnering arrangements that have been entered into in this country. The aim is to inform leaders and decision-makers about the key issues they need to consider across the public sector and for individual projects...

Inquiry into the Ministry of Health's contracting with Allen and Clarke Policy and Regulatory Specialists Limited

December 2005: The findings in this report are a reminder that public entities need to manage contracting for services to ensure two outcomes. The first is that they are receiving value for money. The second is that the risks of actual or perceived impropriety, especially those associated with concurrent or former employment with the entity, are managed in a transparent way...

Inquiry into certain aspects of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

December 2005: This audit and inquiry into Te Wānanga o Aotearoa (TWOA) followed a request for assurance from the then Associate Minister of Education (Tertiary Education) in September 2004. There were concerns about possible conflicts of interest in transactions worth large sums of money. Other issues emerged as we began our inquiry...

Electricity Commission: Contracting with service providers

July 2005: This report describes events leading up to the decision to appoint contractors, and analyses the practices followed. It also sets out our expectations of public entities involved in sole source procurement in circumstances where contestable procurement is impracticable...

Ministry of Defence and NZ Defence Force: Further report on the acquisition and introduction into service of Light Armoured Vehicles

December 2004: This is our second report about the acquisition of 105 Light Armoured Vehicles for the New Zealand Army. The findings are significant for capital purchasing in the wider public sector...

Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology's management of conflicts of interest regarding the Computing Offered On-Line (COOL) programme

November 2004: The findings of this inquiry into how CPIT managed conflicts of interest regarding the Computing Offered On-Line programme emphasise the need for public entities to carefully consider the ethical dimensions of conflicts of interest...

Risk-based approach to contracts

July 2004, paper prepared for the Conferenz 5th Annual Internal Audit Forum.

Purchasing Primary Health Care Provided in General Practice

March 2002: Few of us know the complicated funding and purchasing arrangements that underpin primary health care consultations and how the arrangements have developed - particularly over the last 10 years. This report provides explanation and analysis of what the arrangements look like now...

Ministry of Defence: Acquisition of Light Armoured Vehicles and Light Operational Vehicles

August 2001: We have compiled this report from the markedly divergent views of the MoD, the NZDF and Army. Documentary evidence was often poor. Key decisions were often not recorded. Nevertheless, we feel that we have assembled a compelling picture that illustrates problems in the key areas of governance, relationships, accountabilities, and defence planning...

Good practice for involvement in a major project, lessons from the Opuha Dam Project

February 2001: The purpose of our review was to see what messages for good practice we could find from looking at one large-scale project. While much is known about the circumstances of the breach of the Opuha Dam, the lessons for public authorities that might be involved in such projects have not hitherto been explored...

Papakura District Council: Water and wastewater franchise

April 1998: Franchise agreements can be a viable option for the delivery of local authority services. However, there are inherent risks. Our audit has identified a number of these risks and we hope that other authorities will benefit from a greater awareness of the processes which need to be followed...

Contracting out local authority regulatory functions

November 1999: In July 1998 the Queenstown Lakes District Council became one of the first local authorities to contract out most of its regulatory functions to a private contractor. The first part of this report is a good practice guide. The second part looks at Queenstown's experience...

Second report for 1999

June 1999.

Good practice for purchasing by government departments

September 1995, ISBN 0 477 02848 9.

Report on the Police tender for body armour

September 1993.

Management of selected capital projects by local authorities

1991.