A meal at a high-end restaurant purchased by a TasTAFE credit card had a bill of 40 per cent alcohol, an audit has revealed.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The government-issued credit cards were also used frequently at TasTAFE for travel, entertainment, gift cards, fuel and food and coffee for meetings to “entertain industry representatives.”
An audit of credit card use at the public education provider was one of nine audits ordered by the state government last year.
The full report, with details of the nine areas of governance examined by auditors WFL was tabled in Parliament last week.
Following the release of the report, The Examiner will be delving into the nine areas audited in the investigation.
RELATED STORIES:
The audit on credit card use examined transactions made by TasTAFE credit card holders between July 2015 and July 2017.
During that period, there were 210 cardholders, with seven executives and 203 non-executives.
For that period, there was a total spend of just more than $4 million.
“The executive staff member transactions indicated a common practice of purchasing meals and coffees for meetings and in some cases entertaining industry representatives, many of which were incurred at well regarded restaurants and eateries,” the report read.
Testing also noted a “significant number” of transactions where meals and coffees were purchased that did not relate to approved travel or expenses.
“Our analysis indicates that credit cards are a significant payment method for TasTAFE reflective of the organisation’s high-volume, low-value purchasing requirements,” the report read.
Transactions that breached the Treasurer’s Instruction included: 45 fuel transactions, both executives and non-executives used their credit cards for entertainment purposes, purchase of meals and coffees which did not relate to approved travel, nine occasions where credit cards were used to purchase gift cards and one flight purchased that was not related to approved travel.
“Staff have indicated a practice of purchasing gift cards as rewards for staff or students,” the report read.
Staff also indicated they had been asked to use their credit card to pay for transactions on behalf of other senior staff members.
Auditors didn’t find any documentation to support these claims.
The audit also highlighted a number of problems with credit card governance including: breaches of authorisation limits, missing documentation, lack of credit card acknowledgements, issues with reconciliations and authorisation of transactions within the system.
The interviews conducted with staff within TasTAFE indicate a broad awareness of the policy’s existence, however, with the exception of a couple of staff members, staff interviewed had a limited understanding of the specific contents of the policy
TasTAFE does have a credit card policy, but auditors said there was limited awareness among staff about its contents.
“The interviews conducted with staff within TasTAFE indicate a broad awareness of the policy’s existence, however, with the exception of a couple of staff members, staff interviewed had limited understanding of the specific contents,” the report read.
The policy document did not specifically address entertainment.
A review of purchasing and credit card use at Drysdale was recommended by the auditors, in light of what they described as a “lack of clarity” across the organisation.
“During our review, we noted a lack of clarity in relation to the purchasing strategy adopted across the organisation,” the report read.
“This includes a lack of clarity surrounding purchasing decisions, cost-effectiveness, forward planning for purchasing, approved suppliers and whether credit cards are an effective and efficient payment method for certain areas.”
Drysdale is an area of TasTAFE that has “significant purchasing requirements” the auditors noted, so a review and clarification of those purchasing guidelines was recommended.
TasTAFE management accepted the recommendation and has taken steps to ensure that review is carried out.
Despite noting the number of credit card “breaches” auditors said there were a number of elements that were working well.
“The current purchasing policies of TasTAFE are consistent with whole-of government policies,” the report read.
“TasTAFE is a large organisation with significant purchasing requirements, including a high volume of low dollar value transactions.
“The previous and current policy documents are consistent with the requirements of the Treasurer’s Instruction and are sufficiently detailed to communicate responsibilities and requirements effectively.”
Auditors also noted the work already under way by management.
“There has been a focus by executive management to reinforce the credit card policy and compliance across TasTAFE in recent months.”
Others areas audited are: recruitment, travel and entertainment, conflicts of interest, contract services, remuneration, human resources, misconduct and personal benefits.