The National Commission of Audit, established by the Abbott government in 2013, was initially budgeted at approximately $1 million but ended up costing $2.5 million – representing a $1.5 million or approximately 150% cost overrun (the claim's 67% figure understates the actual percentage increase) [1][2].
The Commission was established in October 2013 as one of the Abbott government's first acts, chaired by Tony Shepherd (then President of the Business Council of Australia), with former Howard government minister Amanda Vanstone and former heads of Finance and Treasury departments Peter Boxall and Tony Cole as commissioners [3][4].
The cost breakdown, as reported, included:
- $1.9 million for expert staff from Finance, Treasury, and Prime Minister's departments [1]
- $157,000 for Peter Crone (head of the secretariat) [1]
- $85,000 each for Chairman Tony Shepherd and Commissioner Amanda Vanstone [1]
- $50,000 to Boston Consulting Group [1]
Nature of the Cost Overrun**: The "budget" of $1 million appears to have been a preliminary estimate mentioned by Tony Shepherd in Senate hearings where he described the Commission as "great value for money" at $1 million [6].
However, as noted in Senate questioning, this figure did not include the costs of public servants from departments who were seconded to work on the Commission [6].
Scale Relative to Government Spending**: The Commission of Audit cost $2.5 million to review the entire Commonwealth government's finances and operations – a tiny fraction of the $400+ billion federal budget.
如果 rú guǒ 委员会 wěi yuán huì 的 de 建议 jiàn yì 得到 dé dào 实施 shí shī , , 将 jiāng 节省 jié shěng 数十 shù shí 亿澳元 yì ào yuán [ [ 7 7 ] ] 。 。
The Commission's recommendations, if implemented, would have resulted in billions of dollars in savings [7].
**3.
Precedent from Previous Government**: The Howard government established a similar National Commission of Audit in 1996 (chaired by Professor Bob Officer) at the beginning of their term [3][8].
Complexity and Scope**: The Commission was given an ambitious mandate covering "the scope of government, the current architecture of commonwealth-state relations, the efficiency and effectiveness of government expenditure, commonwealth finances, and adequacy of existing budgetary controls and disciplines" [6].
The original source (Yahoo7 News/The West Australian) requires contextual assessment:
**The West Australian** is a daily newspaper published in Perth, owned by Seven West Media.
* * * * 西澳 xī ào 人报 rén bào ( ( The The West West Australian Australian ) ) * * * * 是 shì 珀斯 pò sī 出版 chū bǎn 的 de 日报 rì bào , , 由 yóu Seven Seven West West Media Media 拥有 yōng yǒu 。 。
While generally considered a mainstream media outlet, Seven West Media has historically leaned toward conservative editorial positions.
虽然 suī rán 通常 tōng cháng 被 bèi 认为 rèn wéi 是 shì 主流 zhǔ liú 媒体 méi tǐ , , 但 dàn Seven Seven West West Media Media 历史 lì shǐ 上 shàng 倾向 qīng xiàng 于 yú 保守 bǎo shǒu 的 de 编辑 biān jí 立场 lì chǎng 。 。
The story was republished on Yahoo7 News, a joint venture between Yahoo and Seven West Media [1][9].
However, the framing of the story – emphasizing the irony of an austerity-focused review going over budget – follows a narrative pattern common in political reporting that highlights perceived government hypocrisy.
**Did Labor do something similar?**
Search conducted: "Labor government audit review commission spending efficiency program Australia"
Finding: The Rudd government (2007-2013) conducted several large-scale reviews and summits, most notably the **Australia 2020 Summit** held in April 2008.
* * * *
This summit brought together 1,000 participants to discuss "long-term challenges and opportunities" facing Australia across 10 policy streams [10].
While an exact cost figure for the Australia 2020 Summit is not readily available in the sources examined, summits of this scale typically cost several million dollars in venue, logistics, and personnel costs.
Additionally, the Labor government commissioned numerous reviews during their tenure (2007-2013), including:
- The Gonski Review of School Funding (which was extensive and multi-year)
- Various health system reviews
- The Henry Tax Review (2009-2010), a comprehensive review of Australia's tax system
The Henry Tax Review alone involved extensive consultation, research, and a large secretariat over approximately 18 months, costing millions of dollars [11].
**Precedent for Commission of Audit**: The 1996 Commission of Audit under the Howard government established the precedent for incoming governments to conduct comprehensive financial reviews.
虽然 suī rán 在 zài 查阅 chá yuè 的 de 来源 lái yuán 中 zhōng 没有 méi yǒu 找到 zhǎo dào Australia Australia 2020 2020 峰会 fēng huì 的 de 确切 què qiè 成本 chéng běn 数字 shù zì , , 但 dàn 这种 zhè zhǒng 规模 guī mó 的 de 峰会 fēng huì 通常 tōng cháng 在 zài 场地 chǎng dì 、 、 后勤 hòu qín 和 hé 人员 rén yuán 成本 chéng běn 上 shàng 花费 huā fèi 数百万美元 shù bǎi wàn měi yuán 。 。
This practice has been adopted by subsequent Coalition governments but not by Labor governments, which have tended to use different mechanisms (summits, targeted reviews) for policy development.
The $2.5 million represents the true total cost including public servant time [6].
2. **Scope and Complexity**: The Commission was tasked with reviewing the entire Commonwealth government operations in just a few months – an ambitious undertaking that naturally required significant resources [6].
3. **Value Proposition**: The $2.5 million cost to review a $400+ billion budget represents approximately 0.0006% of annual federal expenditure.
If the Commission's recommendations had been fully implemented (they were largely rejected due to political unpopularity), the savings would have been in the billions [7].
4. **Expertise Required**: The Commission drew on senior public servants with deep institutional knowledge.
Their compensation ($85,000 for five months' work for the Chair, equivalent to approximately $204,000 annualized) was not excessive for senior executive work [1].
**Comparison to Private Sector**: Major management consulting firms charge $500,000-$1 million+ for comprehensive organizational reviews.
The Commission's cost of $2.5 million to review an entire government's finances is relatively modest by comparison.
**Political Context**: The claim's framing emphasizes irony and hypocrisy, which is a legitimate angle.
如果 rú guǒ 委员会 wěi yuán huì 的 de 建议 jiàn yì 得到 dé dào 充分 chōng fèn 实施 shí shī ( ( 它们 tā men 因 yīn 政治 zhèng zhì 不 bù 受欢迎 shòu huān yíng 而 ér 被 bèi 大量 dà liàng 拒绝 jù jué ) ) , , 节省 jié shěng 将 jiāng 达 dá 数十 shù shí 亿澳元 yì ào yuán [ [ 7 7 ] ] 。 。
However, the scale of the overrun ($1.5 million) is minor in the context of federal government spending, and the comparison to Labor's Australia 2020 Summit (which had less concrete outcomes) suggests that this type of expenditure is not unique to one party.
The factual claims are accurate: the Commission of Audit did cost approximately $2.5 million against an initial estimate of around $1 million, representing a significant cost overrun.
However, the framing emphasizes irony while downplaying context about how government cost estimates often work (initial estimates frequently exclude departmental secondments), the ambitious scope of the review, and the relatively modest cost compared to the size of the federal budget.
主张 zhǔ zhāng 中 zhōng 引用 yǐn yòng 的 de 67% 67% 数字 shù zì 实际上 shí jì shàng 低估 dī gū 了 le 超支 chāo zhī , , 实际 shí jì 接近 jiē jìn 150% 150% 。 。
The 67% figure cited in the claim actually understates the overrun, which was closer to 150%.
The factual claims are accurate: the Commission of Audit did cost approximately $2.5 million against an initial estimate of around $1 million, representing a significant cost overrun.
However, the framing emphasizes irony while downplaying context about how government cost estimates often work (initial estimates frequently exclude departmental secondments), the ambitious scope of the review, and the relatively modest cost compared to the size of the federal budget.
主张 zhǔ zhāng 中 zhōng 引用 yǐn yòng 的 de 67% 67% 数字 shù zì 实际上 shí jì shàng 低估 dī gū 了 le 超支 chāo zhī , , 实际 shí jì 接近 jiē jìn 150% 150% 。 。
The 67% figure cited in the claim actually understates the overrun, which was closer to 150%.