Mandate, independence and funding: Resolution of a protracted struggle between parliament and the executive over the powers of the Australian Auditor-General

This paper examines a political struggle in the Australian federal sphere o ver parliament's right, exercised through the office of the Auditor-General , to oversee the accounts and management practices of the executive and ent ities created by legislation to deliver public services. The period from th e early 1970s witnessed a dramatic shift in the method of delivering govern ment services to the community and an increasing attention to economy, effi ciency and effectiveness in their administration and delivery. The Australi an government has increasingly used private sector organisational models an d modem management and accounting practices to deliver a wide range of serv ices. The rise of these 'new public management' practices resulted in an er osion of traditional parliamentary oversight of government management and r eporting activities. This historical analysis is based upon Porter's (1981) processual analytical framework. The analysis focuses on the action of gro ups such as the executive, parliamentary committees and the Office of the A uditor-General as evidenced in documents produced in response to critical e vents. Models developed by Funnell and Cooper (1998) are used to characteri se the transition of public sector audit from a traditional administrative model to a corporatist model.