Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated ActsAppointment of person to conduct inspection and audit or investigation
(1) The Commonwealth Minister may appoint a person who, in the Commonwealth Minister's opinion, has skills or knowledge in relation to matters of substantial relevance to the conduct of an inspection and audit or investigation under this section to:
(a) inspect and audit the accounts and records kept by a representative body under section 203DA; or
(b) investigate the body's performance of its functions and exercise of its powers.
Circumstances in which auditor or investigator can be appointed
(2) The Commonwealth Minister must not appoint a person under subsection (1) to conduct an inspection and audit, or an investigation, of a representative body unless the Commonwealth Minister is of the opinion that there is, or may be:
(a) serious or repeated irregularities in the financial affairs of the representative body; or
(b) a failure to satisfactorily perform its functions.
Notice requirements
(3) If the Commonwealth Minister decides that an inspection and audit, or an investigation, is to be undertaken under this section, the Commonwealth Minister must give written notice of that decision to the representative body concerned. The notice must name the person who is to carry out the inspection and audit or the investigation.
Report to Commonwealth Minister
(4) A person appointed under subsection (1) to conduct an inspection and audit or an investigation must give to the Commonwealth Minister a report on the results of that inspection and audit or investigation.
Irregularity to be disclosed
(5) A report under subsection (4) must draw attention to:
(a) any irregularity in the financial affairs of the body disclosed by the inspection and audit or the investigation; or
(b) any failure by the body to perform its functions disclosed by the inspection and audit or the investigation.
Report not to contain matters subject to legal professional privilege
(6) A report under subsection (4) must not contain any information, or include any document or record, that is subject to legal professional privilege or that is derived from information that is subject to legal professional privilege.
Legal professional privilege must be claimed
(7) For the purposes of subsection (6), information, or a document or record, is not taken to be subject to legal professional privilege unless, at or before the time it was obtained by the person appointed under subsection (1), it was claimed to be subject to legal professional privilege by a person entitled to make such a claim.
Auditor or investigator taken to be a Commonwealth public official
(9) To avoid doubt, a person appointed under subsection (1) of this section is taken, for the purposes of the Criminal Code , to be a Commonwealth public official.