Government ICT veteran Peter Alexander has surfaced at the Department of Defence as first assistant secretary while the incoming boss of the competition watchdog has been scrutinised for her previous assistance to the Murdoch empire. Peter Alexander has moved to the Australian Department of Defence after more than five years at the Digital Transformation Agency….
The Digital Transformation Agency has confirmed it will move several high value technology projects to other agencies, including management of the controversial COVIDSafe app, as part of sweeping machinery of government changes.
The offload is part of a shift for the one-time delivery agency to one focused on policy development, and follows a significant budget cut and portfolio move this year.
Acting chief executive Peter Alexander said the shift from project delivery to policy advice is a “vote of confidence” in the Digital Transformation Agency.
But the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) says the changes actually “strengthen” its mandate as the government’s “chief digital advisor”.
In a new Corporate Plan released this week, the DTA’s previous priorities of leading government service transformation and delivery, technology projects and digital skills have been scrapped for a new focus on “direction setting” and “implementation oversight”.
DTA acting chief executive Peter Alexander said the agency will continue to play a leading role in the Coalition government’s $1.2 billion Digital Economy strategy.
“To help deliver on its ambition, the government has implemented significant changes to strengthen the DTA’s mandate,” Mr Alexander said in the Corporate Plan 2021–22 foreword.
“The DTA has changed from a focus on delivering digital and ICT projects to being a trusted advisor to government on strategic planning, investment, contestability and assurance.
“As the government’s Chief Digital Advisor from 1 July 2021, the DTA is responsible for providing strategic and policy leadership on whole-of-government and shared information and communications technology investments and digital service delivery.”
Mr Alexander, who is acting chief executive after the departure of Randall Brugeaud in June, said the DTA will continue to manage whole-of-government digital procurement and “lead the development, delivery and monitoring of whole-of-government strategies, policies and standards”.
Earlier this year the DTA was shifted from Services Australia to the Department of Prime Minister & Cabinet, and weeks later had its resourcing slashed $90 million in the May budget.
The new corporate plan includes the full list of projects moving away from the DTA, including the controversial COVIDSafe contact tracing app, which will now be managed by the Department of Health.
The machinery of government changes effective 5 July 2021 are:
ICT Investment Approval Process – from the Department of Finance to DTA
Whole of Government Procurement of Major Office Machines – from the Department of Finance to DTA
Digital Identity (integrated delivery management) – from DTA to Services Australia and the Australian Taxation Office
myGov Enhancement (integrated delivery management) – from DTA to Services Australia
australia.gov.au – from DTA to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (determining content), and Services Australia (delivery)
Government Domain Names – from DTA to the Department of Finance
National Map – from DTA to Geoscience Australia
data.gov.au – from DTA to the Australian Bureau of Statistics
COVIDSafe app – from DTA to the Department of Health
Australian Government Style Manual – from DTA to the Australian Public Service Commission
Digital Profession – from DTA to the Australian Public Service Commission.
Mr Alexander said the DTA will take back some key investment oversight and assurance functions from the Department of Finance and, in line with the new role, the agency’s workforce would be restructured.
“We are restructuring our workforce, resources and capability to align with this new strategic leadership role, and as the year progresses, we will assess lessons learned and continue to refine and embed our new ways of operating,” he said.
“The 2021–22 financial year marks a key turning point for the DTA and a significant vote of confidence in the DTA’s ability to take on this strategic leadership role,” Mr Alexander said.
The agency’s 2020/21 purpose statement was “simple, clear and fast public services” while the latest has been updated to: “Provide strategic and policy leadership and investment advice and oversight to drive government digital transformation that delivers benefits to all Australians.”
The federal government’s COVIDSafe contact tracing app has not found any new contacts this year and has still identified just 17 people in total, with the agency behind it being forced to issue a correction over figures provided last week.
At a Senate Estimates hearing last week, Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) CEO Randall Brugeaud said COVIDSafe had been used to identify 567 close contacts of confirmed Covid-19 cases.
This was a sharp jump in the 17 contacts previously reported, and confused some of the Labor Senators.
It was later confirmed that this figure included the 544 contacts identified by manual contact tracers in NSW after COVIDSafe helped to identify a new exposure time at a pub in the state.
After discussions with the NSW government, a new definition was used to determine the cases picked up by COVIDSafe and these were included in the total number.
This still left six new cases identified by COVIDSafe that hadn’t been reported, according to the DTA figures.
But the DTA has now admitted that this number is wrong, and the total number of close contacts identified by COVIDSafe, including the 544 identified by manual tracers in NSW, is actually 561.
This means that no new cases have been picked up by COVIDSafe at all this year, despite significant outbreaks in NSW and Victoria.
The DTA confirmed it has issued a correction to the Senate Finance and Public Administration Legislation Committee about this figure.
COVIDSafe has now identified 17 new close contacts directly, with the government saying it has assisted in picking up a further 544because it found a new exposure time at the Mounties pub in western Sydney. This example is spruiked on the COVIDSafe app.
“In one case, NSW Health used COVIDSafe app data to identify a previously unrecognised exposure date from a known venue. This resulted in the identification of an additional 544 contacts. From this group, two people tested positive,” it said.
The sharp increase in the cases the government is claiming COVIDSafe has picked up is the result of a new definition decided with the state and territory governments, DTA chief digital officer Peter Alexander told an Estimates hearing last week.
“We have been able to report as jurisdictions have allowed us to and have agreed to the presentation of that data. The number we’re reporting now has been agreed with Health and the jurisdictions,” Mr Alexander said.
“That 567 that Mr Brugeaud mentioned is the number that has now been agreed between the federal and state and territory governments to report.”
COVIDSafe hasn’t been of use yet in Victoria despite the recent outbreak. Health Minister Martin Foley was asked if it had detected any new contacts in the state, to which he replied it hadn’t, and that he would’ve been informed about it because it would have been “such a rare occurrence”.
At the Estimates hearing, the DTA said that COVIDSafe will cost $60,000 per month to continue running from July. It is currently costing more than $70,000 per month to operate.
The federal government was meant to provide a report to Parliament on the effectiveness of COVIDSafe several months ago. Under legislation passed early last year, the government must report on the app every six months. It’s now been more than a year since COVIDSafe was launched, but the government is yet to produce one report.
It is expected that this first report will be tabled in Parliament during the Winter sittings.
The federal government’s COVIDSafe contact tracing app has not found any new contacts this year and has still identified just 17 people in total, with the agency behind it being forced to issue a correction over figures provided last week.
At a Senate Estimates hearing last week, Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) CEO Randall Brugeaud said COVIDSafe had been used to identify 567 close contacts of confirmed Covid-19 cases.
This was a sharp jump in the 17 contacts previously reported, and confused some of the Labor Senators.
It was later confirmed that this figure included the 544 contacts identified by manual contact tracers in NSW after COVIDSafe helped to identify a new exposure time at a pub in the state.
After discussions with the NSW government, a new definition was used to determine the cases picked up by COVIDSafe and these were included in the total number.
This still left six new cases identified by COVIDSafe that hadn’t been reported, according to the DTA figures.
But the DTA has now admitted that this number is wrong, and the total number of close contacts identified by COVIDSafe, including the 544 identified by manual tracers in NSW, is actually 561.
This means that no new cases have been picked up by COVIDSafe at all this year, despite significant outbreaks in NSW and Victoria.
The DTA confirmed it has issued a correction to the Senate Finance and Public Administration Legislation Committee about this figure.
COVIDSafe has now identified 17 new close contacts directly, with the government saying it has assisted in picking up a further 544because it found a new exposure time at the Mounties pub in western Sydney. This example is spruiked on the COVIDSafe app.
“In one case, NSW Health used COVIDSafe app data to identify a previously unrecognised exposure date from a known venue. This resulted in the identification of an additional 544 contacts. From this group, two people tested positive,” it said.
The sharp increase in the cases the government is claiming COVIDSafe has picked up is the result of a new definition decided with the state and territory governments, DTA chief digital officer Peter Alexander told an Estimates hearing last week.
“We have been able to report as jurisdictions have allowed us to and have agreed to the presentation of that data. The number we’re reporting now has been agreed with Health and the jurisdictions,” Mr Alexander said.
“That 567 that Mr Brugeaud mentioned is the number that has now been agreed between the federal and state and territory governments to report.”
COVIDSafe hasn’t been of use yet in Victoria despite the recent outbreak. Health Minister Martin Foley was asked if it had detected any new contacts in the state, to which he replied it hadn’t, and that he would’ve been informed about it because it would have been “such a rare occurrence”.
At the Estimates hearing, the DTA said that COVIDSafe will cost $60,000 per month to continue running from July. It is currently costing more than $70,000 per month to operate.
The federal government was meant to provide a report to Parliament on the effectiveness of COVIDSafe several months ago. Under legislation passed early last year, the government must report on the app every six months. It’s now been more than a year since COVIDSafe was launched, but the government is yet to produce one report.
It is expected that this first report will be tabled in Parliament during the Winter sittings.
