Public Interest Disclosures
The NDIS Commission is subject to the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 (PID Act).
Broadly speaking, a disclosure is a ‘public interest disclosure’ if:
- it is made by a current or former public official (such as an NDIS Commission employee)
- the information disclosed tends to show, or the discloser believes on reasonable grounds that it tends to show, one or more instances of ‘disclosable conduct’; and
- the disclosure is made to the person’s ‘supervisor’ or an ‘authorised officer’ (another person who is authorised by the PID Act to receive the disclosure).
‘Disclosable conduct’ includes a wide range of wrongful conduct engaged in by an agency (as defined by section 73 of the PID Act) or by a public official in connection with his or her position as a public official. It includes conduct that contravenes a law, maladministration or abuse of public trust, or conduct that results in wastage of public money or property. Conduct by a public official that could, if proven, give reasonable grounds for formal misconduct action against the public official is also disclosable conduct.
Under the PID Act, the NDIS Commission is required to prepare procedures for facilitating and dealing with public interest disclosures relating to the Commission. These procedures explain:
- what a public interest disclosure is and who may make them;
- how and to whom public interest disclosures can be made; and
- what happens after a person makes a public interest disclosure in relation to the NDIS Commission.
Authorised officers
Authorised officers for the NDIS Commission under the PID Act are the Commissioner for the NDIS Commission (i.e. the agency head) and officers that the Commissioner appoints as authorised officers.
The following officers have been appointed as authorised officers:
- Chief Operating Officer
- General Counsel and Assistant Commissioner, Legal Services and Internal Integrity
- Principal Lawyers
- Director, Internal Integrity Unit
- Assistant Directors, Internal Integrity Unit
- Senior Review Officers, Internal Integrity Unit.
The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission authorised officers can be contacted by email: internalintegrity@ndiscommission.gov.au